A Search For Balance
by MayuoftheMoon
Summary: Ayama Keiko is a wistful woman shrouded in mystery, brought out of seclusion by a strange, dark aura coming from Kyoto. After encountering the Captain of the 2nd Devision of the Shinsengumi, Nagakura Shinpachi, she decides that she will go with them to discover what evil is plaguing the city streets by night. Nagakura/OC and Heisuke/Chizuru pairings.
1. Prologue

Prologue

Walking down the streets of Kyoto, she just couldn't help herself from admiring the bustling crowds. Oh, how they had _grown_ so much since she had last been in this area! It had been so long since she had walked the streets of a proper village, let alone a city as busy and hectic as this one! Many years spent being alone had given her a new appreciation of being around so many people, and she felt a bit in awe of it all.

But something odd had caught her attention and forced her out of her seclusion. She had sensed a growing aura, a pitch black stain which was slowly devouring the city. Now, under the light of the midday sun, the aura was somewhat hidden. _She_ could sense it, slumbering in the shadows, but she was certain the average citizen had no idea what crept into their city come nightfall. _Something_ was upsetting the world's balance, creating a darkness which would spread if not dealt with soon. She was curious as to what could be causing such a disruption that even she could have sensed it from her lonely home in the mountains.

Keiko wandered the streets, not really paying direct attention to anything as she walked. She received many concerned and confused stares as she strolled through the city, although it did not surprise her. Her attire was quite unusual for a woman, she was certain that these people had never seen someone like her before. Unlike most other women, she chose to wear pants and a top rather than a kimono. She wore loose pale blue pants which faded into white at the bottom, where she used white cloth to wrap around her ankles to secure the pants in place. A white cloth was tied around her waist in a large bow to hold her pants to her hips. Her black top, which was tucked neatly into her pants, was fairly tight to her torso. The fabric around her chest reached up around her neck in a tight collar, leaving her shoulders bare. She had sleeves of the same colour as her pants, which were held around her upper arms by thin silver bands. A line of silver plum blossoms lined the top of her collar, just below her chin, standing out brilliantly against the darkness of her top. She wore a pair of plain black flats, which she found immensely easier to walk and run in than the traditional sandals.

Stranger yet was how she wore her hair. Keiko was quite proud of her long, silky jet-black hair which reached down to her knees. She wore it down, with a pale blue ribbon tying the bottom of it to keep it somewhat contained. She had short bangs which swept to her left, a few strands falling down to frame her face and hide her ears. Many townsfolk stopped in their tracks to gawk at her. Everything about her was strange, from her abnormal dress to her odd style of hair to the way that she carried herself. She was carefree and absentminded, seemingly from another world.

As she continued her exploration of the town, she failed to notice a group of four rambunctious ronin heading in her direction. She caught the sound of a wind chime and turned her head to it's direction, oblivious to the rowdy men marching towards her. As they chatted and laughed amongst themselves, they were eyeing her with devilish grins spread across their faces. She stopped, only hearing the sound of the chimes dangling in a shop window.

"My, aren't you exotic…" one of the men commented as he stopped in front of Keiko. "And quite beautiful too." Another spoke, standing beside his comrade.

Keiko completely ignored them and turned to walk towards the wind chimes. Perhaps they were for sale.

The men were shocked, but only for a moment. Irked, the tallest of the group stormed ahead and stood in front of her, blocking her path. " **OI!** " He exclaimed, waving a hand in front of her face as she stopped and stared blankly at his face.

"Do you need something?" She asked, her clear voice quiet but firm. Her tone seemed very disinterested, which only served to feed the ronin's anger.

"Don't ignore people when you're being spoken to, _woman_!" The tall one bellowed. A shorter, more muscular looking man stepped forward, nodding as he did so. "Especially when you're being complimented. Someone might think you ungrateful." His tone was accusatory as he eyed her. She narrowed her eyes as she glared at him.

"Why should I have gratitude for such meaningless words? Such creatures as yourself deserve ignoring." She said flippantly, pushing past the group of men to carry on her way towards the shop.

"HEY! HOLD IT!" the tall man finally snapped, reaching out and grabbing onto her arm in a rough manner. She turned her head, her cold blue eyes searing into his dull brown ones. She twisted her arm just enough to grab onto his wrist, then swiftly twisted herself and pulled him to toss him into the ground.

"Do not touch me, filth." She hissed, standing proudly above the fallen man. He groaned, struggling to regain his senses after the ordeal. "You… urgh, you bitch…" He stumbled as he forced himself off the ground, only to find her already walking away. One of the other ronin reached out a hand to help him up, and he quickly swatted it away. "Idiot! Go get her!" He shouted as he dragged himself into a standing position. The group of them then raced after Keiko.

She heard them coming and sighed. _This is troublesome,_ she thought idly as she easily dodged one of the men attempting to grab onto her. She twisted around and kicked at her attacker, sending him soaring into the dirt. She leapt back as another of them lunged after her, dipping into a narrow alleyway. The men snickered as they noticed the change in location. Keiko was unconcerned. She continued dipping over and under the men, despite the lack of space the alley provided, causing the men to grow steadily more irritated. None of the bunch had noticed a growing crowd at the entrance to the alleyway, among them a few men bearing light blue coats.

"Stop messing around and just _grab her_!" The tall man shouted impatiently. Two of his comrades rushed towards Keiko, reaching out to grab her. She leapt back, flipping backward as she kicked the closer of the two in the jaw then landing in a crouching position, only to rush forward and send a powerful punch into the second man's gut. She managed to accomplish both strikes in the blink of an eye, and as quickly as they had rushed towards her the two men were falling to the ground, unconscious. Keiko stood to face the tall man and the short, muscular man head on. The two of them were absolutely fuming.

Being completely enraged - and in Keiko's opinion, completely unintelligent - the two men lunged after the proud woman in front of them. They darted apart, intending to swarm her from both sides of the alleyway at once. Keiko sighed, then swirled around gracefully, catching the short man against a wall with her foot to his jugular while she held the presumed leader against the opposite wall by the throat. She dug her nails into his flesh as she glared daggers at him, simultaneously applying more pressure to the other man's neck with her foot.

As she stood there, ready to snap both of their necks at once, she heard the sound of a pair of hands clapping. She turned her head to the entrance of the alley to see a tall, handsome man staring at her with an amused expression as he stood in front of the large crowd, and clapped. He had a large, friendly grin on his face as he walked towards her. He was one of the men in the blue coats, she noticed.

"That was quite impressive, I've never seen anyone fight like that before! Especially not a woman…: The last part was almost a murmur, a sheepish look passing across his face momentarily as he spoke the words. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"That so." She spoke quietly, unwilling to trust his friendly demeanor. His smile dropped at the sound of her voice as he detected the venom laced in her words. A warning. She still held the two ronin in place as she glared at the new man. He recovered his cool after a moment and grinned at her again.

"Yeah. Honestly, I'm very impressed... " He seemed thoughtful as he spoke. He gestured then for his associates in blue to come and retrieve the ronin. Keiko eyed the new group of men warily, but opted to just see what these new people would do and released the two men from her hold. They fell to the ground, gasping and choking for the air she had withheld from them, unable to resist the uniformed men dragging them and their friends away. "You know," The friendly looking man spoke again, regaining Keiko's attention. "I really think we could use a fighter like you in our little _army_." He said the words with mirth in his voice. She cocked her head to the side at his comment, her interest slightly peaked.

"Would that not be unsightly, a woman holding such a rank as soldier." She spoke with a sardonic tone, rolling her eyes at the ridiculousness of it all. The man only chuckled.

"We've always been an unsightly bunch anyway. Besides, I don't think Hijikata would be able to resist a vixen of your, uh, talents." He beamed at her, and she couldn't help but to smirk back at his enthusiasm. This was an interesting development indeed, and quite the interesting choice of title to call her by. She chose to ignore it for the moment.

"And what would make your organization worthy of my help?" She teased, grinning slightly as the man before her faltered a bit from her comment. But then a sly grin spread across his face and he pulled his sword from its sheath. Keiko's grin only widened at this.

"Why don't I prove our worthiness right now?" He challenged. Keiko dropped into a fighting stance immediately, her excitement nearly bubbling over as she watched the man take his own battle stance. He lunged at her, striking out with his sword abruptly, but he was not quick enough to catch her unguarded. She dodged easily and stepped to the side to avoid his thrusts. They danced around each other, dipping in and out of striking range. Keiko wasn't putting too much effort into the fight, but she was certainly paying more attention to this man compared to the ronin from earlier. He _demanded_ it of her with his sword, lunging past her powerfully.

"My name is Nagakura Shinpachi! Captain of the second division of the Shinsengumi!" He bellowed excitedly as he brought down a particularly powerful strike towards Keiko. She narrowly avoided it and twisted around to the side as she laughed, sending a kick in the direction of his head.

"Ayama Keiko," She exclaimed as she dodged another of his attacks, her blissful voice ringing out more pleasantly than the wind chimes from the shop. Shinpachi grinned as he leapt towards her, swinging his sword in a downward motion. She turned and grabbed onto his wrist to redirect him, only for him to grab her's back and hold both of them in place. She beamed up at him. "I am delighted to meet you, Nagakura Shinpachi of the Shinsengumi!"

They let go of each other and each bowed in respect, then straightened to smile at one another again. Shinpachi had been right, this woman was a _very_ skilled fighter, and he knew that she would be a valued addition to their ragtag group of wanna-be samurai, even if she was a woman. Likewise, Keiko could clearly see that this man and his comrades would prove quite interesting, and she suspected that by going with them she may yet discover what was plaguing this city with darkness. Keiko giggled then, and turned to walk towards the yet larger crowd which had formed to watch the two spar. She reached the end of the alleyway and turned her head to look at Shinpachi.

"Are you going to take me to your organization or what?" She said as she grinned at him. He beamed and ran towards her, motioning for her to follow. She quickly did so, her heart filling with great anticipation as they headed towards the Shinsengumi Headquarters.


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi all! Thanks for reading, I just have a few things to say about this story.**

 **Firstly, updates will most likely be sporadic, my hours at my work are unreliable and most days after getting up too early then getting home too late, I just don't feel like writing. On top of that, I spend a lot of time reworking and revising these things so that I'm happy with what I put out.**

 **That being said, while I used to write a lot in highschool, I am very out of practice now and, to be honest, I've lost a lot of confidence in my skills. I am writing this story with the hopes of improving my writing skills, so please feel free to leave a review with some constructive criticism! I would love to hear some advice and feedback, and work to make this story the best I can make it!**

 **Again, thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy the story!**

 **Disclaimer: Ayama Keiko is my character, but otherwise, I own nothing.**

Chapter 1

"Nagakura, what is the meaning of this?" Hijikata was more than a little annoyed. What was his subordinate thinking, bringing a woman here. And crazier still, asking to let her join the Shinsengumi? Surely, the muscular brunette must have lost his sanity. Kondo seemed hesitant as well, glancing between the bowing Shinpachi and the woman, who had refused to belittle herself to them. He took a cautious glance at Serizawa, only to find a sly smile gracing his face. He wasn't sure if this was a good or a bad sign.

"Please, just trust me! Just watch her fight, I promise you will see what I mean!" Shinpachi almost yelled, his excitement from earlier not having died down just yet. Keiko smiled slightly at his desperation. She must have made quite the impression on him for him to be begging for her to stay like this. She almost snickered to herself.

Before Hijikata could refuse again, Serizawa's booming voice interrupted any train of thought he may have had. "DOG!" He nearly shouted, making Keiko grimace. His voice was loud and unpleasant. The door slid open and a blue haired boy poked his head in. Before he could speak, Serizawa bellowed out his orders. "Bring me some more sake, dog!" His order was short and to the point, and although the boy sighed he did as he was told and left to fetch it.

"I trust you, Shinpachi. But… If this woman is as spectacular as you say she is, I think I would like to witness that myself." Hijikata almost physically reacted to this as Serizawa spoke the words. You could feel the resentment burning in him, you could see him trying desperately to keep his composure as he spoke. "Serizawa-san… Regardless of her "skill"... She is still a woman!" Kondo jumped a little as Hijikata's rage surged in his last sentence. He grimaced, but said nothing still. Serizawa only chuckled.

"It is that mindset which could get you killed one day, boy." He teased. "Whether you are a woman or a man, your skill in battle is what will keep you alive. I think I know who she will fight then…" Just as he reached his decision, the blue haired boy slid the door open and carried in the sake. "Not in here you fool! We are going into the courtyard." The boy had a look of confusion on his face, but followed quickly as Serizawa picked himself up and began to stroll towards the courtyard. Keiko smirked as she rose from her sitting position. Hijikata glared up at her. "I hope you realize what you've agreed to, woman." He spat. She only grinned down at him, not offering any kind of answer.

At this point nearly everyone in the complex had come to see what was going on. Shinpachi, in his excitement, ran over to his two curious friends. "Heisuke, Sano! You guys are in for a treat tonight!" He shouted, energetic as ever. Keiko smiled as Shinpachi hastily explained his earlier interaction with her. Slowly, other men joined the group to listen in. Once Shinpachi had told everyone, they all turned to stare at the strange woman.

"ALRIGHT!" Serizawa's voice echoed throughout the courtyard. "Woman, state your name." He demanded. She tilted her head in recognition before raising her own beautiful voice.

"I am Ayama Keiko. Pleasure to meet you." She dipped her head in a slight bow in greeting. Serizawa seemed pleased by this.

"Good. Now then. Shinpachi here brought this woman to our complex with the promise that she could put on a good show for us." He started. "Supposedly… She is a very talented fighter. Perhaps we might get a couple volunteers to test her skills?"

Heisuke, who had seemed unusually quiet throughout the entire ordeal thus far, seemed visibly distraught by the implications at hand. "But… Serizawa-san! We can't fight a WOMAN!" The distress he was going through made Keiko snicker, almost sardonically.

"Don't worry about me, little one. I can handle more than you could throw at me." She winked as she teased him, chuckling as she noticed a crimson blush spread across his face at her remarks. The other men laughed, Harada wrapping an arm around the younger man's neck in teasing reassurance.

"Anyone else have a problem with it?" Serizawa bellowed, staring deliberately at Hijikata. Hijikata stared back, but said nothing. "Alright then, volunteers?"

At first, all the men only looked at one another expectantly. Keiko stood patiently, analyzing the crowd of men to see who she would be facing. Her eyes found two noteworthy men, besides the commanders. A tall man with reddish-brown, messy hair tied halfway into a topknot, and a quiet man with purple-tinted, long hair tied neatly on his right shoulder. She could sense that they were skilled, perhaps even more so than Shinpachi had been. She hoped one of them might challenge her.

To her surprise, it was Heisuke who timidly raised his hand. Her eyes widened slightly as she tilted her head. He cleared his throat, a slight blush tinting his cheeks.

"Well If no one else is going to!" He blurted out. She smiled at this. This young man was quite endearing, she had to say. He walked over to a stand holding multiple wooden swords, grabbing two off of it.As he walked back to stand a few feet in front of her, he tossed one of the swords to her. She caught it without effort, smiling as she did so.

"Listen," She hesitated as she spoke, her smile wavering for a moment. "You seem very noble. Please try your best… Don't go easy on me because all you see is a woman." Her voice was firm as she spoke. Heisuke seemed a bit surprised, but he quickly regained his resolve and nodded to her. They both held their fake swords in front of them, taking a stance ready for battle. She could see in his stance that he was skilled, but not to the degree that Shinpachi had been. She made a mental note to try not to hurt him.

He lunged first, striking towards her chest, however she easily dodged his strike. She did not attempt to strike back just yet, allowing him to recover from his initial surprise before he attempted another strike at her head. She dipped down to avoid the sword before swirling around and sending a strike towards him. Heisuke just barely blocked her strike before pushing her back and attempting another jab at her abdomen. She smirked, sliding her sword along his to quickly rush towards him. In an instant, she was right beside him, smirking evilly down at him as she kicked at his ankle to trip him over. She quickly had her wooden sword to his throat as he landed square on his back.

The fight had been very quick, only a couple of moves had been made. Heisuke was shocked, his eyes wide as her sword was pressed to the skin of his throat. The other men had gone completely silent. Hijikata was now glaring at the woman, silently assessing her. Suddenly, he spoke up.

"Alright. You've got my attention now." He looked towards the crowd of men. "Saito." He called out, and the quiet purple-haired man stepped forward, nodding towards the other, more stoic man. He then turned his cold gaze to Keiko as she helped Heisuke to his feet. She nodded her head in a slight bow to him, he bowed slightly deeper in respect, then walked back to his friends. Keiko turned her attentions to her new challenger, Saito.

Neither opponent needed to say anything. Their eyes were equally chilled as they stared each other down, analyzing one another simultaneously. This time, Keiko decided to begin the fight first.

She lunged toward him, swinging her sword in an upward motion, only for him to dip back and avoid her easily. He the lunged towards her, his sword moving blindingly fast, and yet she still caught it with her own. The two of them lunged and leapt towards each other, neither one of them relenting in the slightest, both pushing forward with immense power. Keiko grit her teeth as she pushed his latest strike away from her, before turning on her heel to run backwards. She heard a gasp from the men as she ran away, but she could sense that Saito was not fooled. He chased after her, only for her to leap atop the stand holding all the swords. A wicked smile crossed her lips then, causing everyone present to go silent.

As Saito continued rushing towards her, she kicked out the swords at him. She kicked one towards his head, then immediately two towards his legs. He grunted as he tried to avoid the flying weapons, only for her to push herself off of the sword stand with immeasurable speed. Saito barely had time to react as she closed the distance between them, bringing her sword down towards his shoulder. He quickly brought his own sword up to block her, and she grinned as he did so, causing him to doubt his judgement.

Taking advantage of his momentary shock, she reached out to grab onto his scarf with her free hand, and proceeded to pull it up and over his face. Saito gasped out in shock, trying desperately to pull it off while not giving up pressure on his sword. She dipped backward a step, dropping her sword before sidestepping around Saito to grab his sword arm and twist it behind his back. She brought her foot to his ankle and tripped him, as she had done with Heisuke, before quickly applying pressure onto his arm, which was now firmly twisted behind his back. She huffed as she looked down at her captive, trying desperately to repress a giggle as she looked at him. He still had his face covered by the scarf, she hadn't given him enough time to remove it before defeating him.

The crowd burst into a thunderous laughter, some of the men also applauding while they chuckled. She released him, but he didn't move yet. She wondered absently if she might've hurt him, but dismissed the thought when she saw a portion of his face. He was blushing madly, not even bothering to move the scarf. He slowly pushed himself off the ground to stand, then turned to face her. Avoiding her gaze, he bowed deeply to her. She smiled and bowed as well.

"That was quite challenging, Saito-san. Thank you for the match." She said quietly, he only blushed more. He nodded before marching over to Hijikata and bowing perhaps even deeper than before, but he did not say anything. He only walked to the back of the crowd to stand beside the reddish haired man, who had a devilish look in his eyes.

"Perhaps I could take a shot at it next…" The man said, his voice laced with mirth. The other men chuckled, nodding their approval.

"Good luck, Ayama-san! Okita-san isn't one to play around when it comes to sword fighting!" Heisuke beamed from his spot in the crowd, already accepting Keiko into their group. She smiled back at him, nodding her acknowledgement.

"I won't play around either then." She stated as the man called Okita walked out.

"Ayama Keiko was it? I'm Okita Souji." He smirked playfully as he continued. "How about I call you Keiko-chan?" His devilish grin spread as Keiko's immediately fell. She glared at him before retorting back. "Perhaps I will be the one offering such disrespect. You should win before you gloat, not the other way around." Her voice, a clear and pleasant sound before, had turned into something much more primal, very nearly a growl. Souji almost lost his sardonic composure at the sound of it, but he quickly took his fighting stance to recover.

Keiko didn't even bother picking up her sword, she darted towards him with intense speed. He gasped as she started sending strikes towards him without a weapon. It was all he could do to block her attacks, while she slowly pushed him back. He almost lost his footing a couple times, as he had underestimated the strength behind her blows. He saw now what a grave mistake he had made by teasing her before their battle, and just how much she had been holding back for the other two.

Keiko saw the recognition in his eyes and smirked before relenting ever so slightly, enough that he could manage a strike of his own towards her. She easily dodged it and leapt backwards. A devilish smile played on her lips. While she did consider herself to be kind, she was also quite proud, and she would absolutely _not_ stand for someone like this man to insult her, even in a teasing manner. She demanded a certain amount of respect, and was not one to relinquish that to _anyone_. As she picked up her assault on the over-confident man before her, she caught a quick glimpse of Hijikata from the corner of her eye. He appeared… Very amused.

Okita did not want to give her the chance to get ahead of him again, so he stepped into her path to thrust his sword forward before she could strike out at him again. He immediately regretted it as she stepped to the side only slightly and reached out to grab his wrist, halting his sword from moving at all, while using her other hand to latch onto his shoulder. He expected her to trip him, as she had done with the other two, but when she didn't move and instead he felt her grip intensify, he hesitantly looked over to her.

Her ice-cold eyes were glaring into his emerald green ones, demanding the respect he had denied her earlier. The sun had completely set by now, giving way to the cold light of the moon. Under it, her eyes almost seemed to glow, radiating a kind of power that he had never felt before. He felt his knees shake slightly as she stared at him. Despite him being taller than her, he felt as though she were looking down at him, down into his very soul. The cold from her eyes froze him in place, seeming to freeze his essence right to that spot. He felt something he hadn't known for a very long time; _fear_. The menacing cold that radiated from her gaze seeped into him, the firm pressure she was applying to his wrist and shoulder suddenly feeling much more threatening than it had before. Souji realized then that this woman was not a person to be toyed with, and that she demanded such respect because she _deserved it_. The regret from his earlier comments hit him hard, and he felt his knees shaking even more than before.

Finally, his legs gave out under the pressure. She released him from her grasp, but she did not release him from her gaze. The entire courtyard had gone completely silent as they witnessed Souji being brought to his knees by this strange woman's cold stare. After another few moments, Souji finally bowed down in front of her.

"I… I'm sorry." He whispered, his voice wavering as he spoke. She relented then, her gaze softening considerably. Then, to everyone's surprise, she adopted a mischievous look rather than such an intense one.

"I will forgive it, Souji- _chaaan~_." She said flippantly. His head shot up at this, just as everyone in the courtyard burst into laughter. He glared at the other men, but decided against saying anything as he got up and stormed towards the back of the crowd, where Saito was.

As a defeated Souji was skulking away, an extremely energetic Shinpachi bound out towards Keiko. He grabbed one of her hands in his and pulled her over towards Hijikata, Kondo and Serizawa, all of whom were still snickering from the fight with Souji. "You see?! I told you she was amazing!" Shinpachi exclaimed, her hand still tightly trapped in his. Kondo looked just as enthusiastic as Shinpachi.

"Indeed! Now that I've seen her in action, I wouldn't want to see her on the opposite side of the battlefield!" He laughed out, his voice friendly and inviting as usual. Serizawa chuckled at his comrade's enthusiasm.

"Yes, that was quite impressive indeed. However," He looked towards Hijikata then. "There is one more person I wish to see her do battle with." A devil's grin was plastered across his face as he maintained eye contact with Hijikata. Hijikata stared back, his own violet gaze equally as intense, before finally sighing and hanging his head.

"If you insist." Was all he said before he rose from his seat. His cold eyes turned on Keiko and she steeled herself, ready to take on this final challenger. Shinpachi reluctantly released her hand and backed away from her as Hijikata raised his arms to fight her - without swords.

Keiko grinned and did the same, taking her own unique battle stance. The wind blew a wisp of clouds across the moon, temporarily removing the light from the silent courtyard as the two glared at one another. As the moon revealed itself again, the fight began.

Hijikata was the first to move, leaping forward with a loud battle cry as he brought his fist flying towards her face. She was impressed with his speed, and she didn't need to feel the blow to know how much force was behind it. She dodged him, sending her own kick towards his head. They danced around each other, both coming close but neither making direct contact. As Keiko reached to send another kick at Hijikata, and he dodge it yet again, she began to grow more and more irritated by the match. It was becoming tiresome.

Finally she opted to just face him head on, if only to actually get somewhere. He brought his fist downward and she raised both of her arms up to block it rather than dodging to the side. Hijikata took advantage of his close proximity and of her lack of available limbs, and sent a heavy punch into her gut with his free arm. She coughed out at the impact, her arms falling limp around his as she fell.

"Sorry, but it looks like you aren't as good as you thought you were." He whispered, barely loud enough for the rest of the men to hear. She chuckled then, a strangled sound. Confusion washed over his face as she grabbed onto his arm, which was still against her stomach, and looked up at him. A bit of saliva had fallen from her mouth from when he punched her, and her eyes were half lidded as she squinted through the pain, yet she still looked as proud as she had when Souji bowed before her in defeat. Hijikata's eyes widened when her nails dug into his arm, securing him in her grasp.

"Well… heh, I guess that goes for you as well." She gasped out before she stood abruptly, throwing all of her weight into tossing Hijikata over her shoulder and onto the ground. She stood over him then as he grunted from the impact, and pressed her foot to his throat. He gasped out from the pressure, before glaring up at her. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand as she stared down at him, mirth shining in her eyes. Hijikata's eyes widened in shock.

"Did… Did you take that hit… On purpose?" He choked out from beneath her foot. She only smiled down at him, denying him any kind of answer.

Suddenly, Serizawa burst out in a fit of laughter.

"Excellent! Just wonderful! I don't think I've ever been so amused!" He was shouting out his praise, but it did not give Keiko any satisfaction. She still grimaced from the sound of this man's voice. She turned her gaze to Kondo, and she couldn't help but to smile. He was beaming at her, and his smile was so friendly and inviting that she just couldn't bare to feel anything but happy. She turned back to Hijikata to find a slight smile on his face as well as he slowly sat up.

"Well… I really can't argue with Kondo's logic." He started. He looked up at her, his smile widening ever so slightly. "I would hate to see you on the other side. If you really are interested, then we will welcome you into our ranks, as a warrior." Keiko grinned and stole a glance at Shinpachi. Him and Heisuke had their arms linked together, both of them beaming at her, their smiles shining brightly with excitement and anticipation. She turned back to Hijikata, her own anticipation boiling over.

"I accept your invitation. I will join the Shinsengumi."


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Are you deaf?! I SAID GET OUT!" a booming voice echoed just as a blue haired boy was tossed out of a sliding door. Keiko started as he landed in front of her, groaning in the dirt.

"Serizawa-san seems quite cheerful today." She snickered as she spoke the words, reaching a hand to help the boy up. He glowered as he accepted the help and the two began to walk away from the commander's room.

She had only been there a couple weeks now, but Keiko was adapting well to being in the shinsengumi, unlike the boy who had been tossed into her path. She felt a bit of pity for Ryunosuke, an artist had no business in a place like this. Despite his brusque mannerisms and apparent rudeness, he was actually a kind-hearted boy. _Soft,_ she thought to herself as she stared at him. She sighed and turned away.

"Does he have an errand for you today?" She cast a sideways glance towards him. He shook his head, avoiding her gaze. "No, but… I think he might be sick…" The last part was barely a whisper. He looked incredibly concerned for the drunkard. Keiko smiled at the boy.

"You seem quite concerned, considering how ungrateful you usually are." She joked. He glared at her, she only smiled wider.

"You've only been here less than a month, what would you know." He growled, turning his sulking gaze away from her. Her smile never left her face. "I am observant, but anyone can see that you don't really want to stay here." She said cheerfully, ignoring his glare. "Or, perhaps you're right. I know nothing." Her smile grew wider as she spoke, and Ryunosuke couldn't help but to allow a small smile to cross his face as she did so. Her personality was infectious. She had a quiet pride that made it hard to doubt her, and no matter what she was always cheerful and carefree. And, above all, she was very wise. She seemed to have a youthful arrogance, but he saw through that. Ryunosuke hadn't known Keiko for very long, yet he trusted her judgement for reasons he could not even begin to fathom. He sighed as they passed through the courtyard.

He thought back to the first day Shinpachi had brought her to the headquarters. He thought she might be a goddess by how the light had caught on her skin, the way she strolled through the gates as though _she_ were the commander. And then the way she _fought!_ Ryunosuke was convinced that she must not be human, she fought so elegantly and without much effort. She took down their strongest captains with ease, in fact she had made each and every one of them look like novices the way that she dispatched them one after another. He had never felt so much admiration as when he watched her fight. Even now, she trained with Heisuke every other day and he still was amazed.

"So Serizawa has become ill…" Keiko's beautiful voice snapped Ryunosuke from his thoughts. He noticed the lack of honourific and looked at her, confused by her lack of respect. He knew that she was prideful, but she had still always been polite. Even when she wasn't around the person she was talking about, she would still call them by the appropriate honourific. He gave her a questioning look, but she appeared deep in thought. He supposed that must be the cause for her sudden lack of manners. "Interesting." She suddenly veered off to the left, heading for the courtyard where the members usually trained with Saito. Ryunosuke shrugged, intending to continue on his way. "Come along, Ryu. You can watch my sparring match with Heisuke today. Maybe you'll learn something."

Ryunosuke groaned, loudly. Keiko continued walking, not waiting for him to argue or complain. Truth be told she had started to develop a soft spot for the men she now spent her time with. Nagakura and Heisuke were always lively and she found their enthusiasm endearing, Harada was responsible and dependable and she found it quite enjoyable to spar with him. Okita was quite mischievous and was always sarcastic, but he was fiercely loyal and she knew that he was a worthy warrior. The same could be said for Saito, although he was very quiet and soft spoken, Keiko had discovered that he was actually very passionate and intelligent. She found Hijikata and Kondo to be deserving of the respect these men gave to them as well. Kondo was friendly and inviting, although a bit too trusting. She felt relief to know that the rest of the Shinsengumi was there to watch his back and keep him from getting hurt. Hijikata was perhaps the most endearing, in a way. It made Keiko's heart swell to think about him… She often thought that he was quite motherly towards his men. He often worried franticly over them, fussing like an overbearing mother and scolding them when they did wrong. Him and Okita often got into small spats, in which Okita felt that Hijikata was a bit too overbearing and Hijikata accused Okita of being too reckless. In fact, the more time she spent here, the more it seemed that the captains of the Shinsengumi really were just a big family.

However, two stood out from the rest. Serizawa, who would go from a drunken bliss to a full blown rage in seconds, and Ryunosuke, a soft-hearted artist who was swept away on a whim by Serizawa. Neither of the two seemed to belong to this family, both of them outcast, yet in different ways. It seemed to her that the others were ostracizing Serizawa for his reckless and aggressive behaviour, whereas Ryunosuke's exclusion seemed to stem from an unspoken wish to protect the boy. It was as clear as day that he did not belong among the Wolves of Mibu.

The more she saw of Ryunosuke and Serizawa, the more she worried for the boy. Despite the rough and, frankly, abusive manner in which Serizawa treated Ryunosuke, he clearly had come to depend on the older man. If something were to happen to Serizawa, Keiko feared for the boy's future.

As the pair walked, the courtyard slowly came into view. By the stand which still held all the training weapons, Heisuke stood as he examined the sword he would be using to train with that day. He noticed the two approaching and turned to beam at them, his friendly smile warming Keiko's heart. It was next to impossible to be anything but cheerful when Heisuke smiled like that. It was infectious.

"Heey~, Ayama-san! You brought Ryu this time?" He spoke gleefully, gesturing to the blue-haired boy who was slouching next to Keiko. She smirked before slapping his shoulder, causing him to jerk upright suddenly. "Indeed I did. I think he could learn a thing or two from watching us today." She grinned down at him. "Starting with posture, you need to stand up straight if you want people to respect you." Ryunosuke groaned deeply. This was going to be unbearable, he could tell already.

Keiko walked over to the weapons stand to take one of the many varying spears. She took a mock glaive off of the stand, the weapon she had grown the most comfortable using over the years. She turned back to see Heisuke and Ryunosuke talking amongst themselves, Heisuke bearing one of his friendly grins and Ryu looking as though Heisuke was about to try and feed him some insects. Keiko chuckled before heading back to join them.

"Don't look so gloomy, Ryu. I'm not going to have you actually _do_ anything, I just want you to watch. And pay attention!" She spoke gently to him, but she held a certain firmness to her voice so that he wouldn't dismiss her. Ryunosuke looked at her sheepishly before sighing. "Why do you want me to watch anyway?" He groaned. Keiko huffed in irritation. "Isn't that obvious? You know nothing about defending yourself. You would be hopeless on your own." She shot him a knowing glare, hoping that Ryu would catch the implication she was making. The surprise and then sadness in his eyes told her that, yes, he did catch it. She turned to Heisuke then, who had been waiting patiently.

"I would like you act on the defensive today, Heisuke. Focus on blocking and evading my advances in order to escape, not to strike me back. Ryu," She spoke his name firmly, and he focused on her entirely as she spoke. "Pay attention to Heisuke's movements. He is far more advanced than you, but you should be able to pick up at least a couple things from watching him." Ryunosuke nodded before turning his attention to Heisuke.

With that, Keiko began her attacks. She rushed towards Heisuke, slower than she usually would so that Ryunosuke could see clearly. Heisuke did well to block and evade her, dodging carefully to avoid her glaive and ducking around when she moved to counter him. Whenever he would successfully block her, he would throw his weight into pushing her back enough for him to have time to back up. A few times, Keiko would rush forward to try and snatch Heisuke's weapon, or to trip him up as she had the first time, but he had learned quite a bit since their first battle and expertly dodged her attempts. The match went on for some time, Keiko slowly picking up the speed of her attacks, until eventually she was able to outmaneuver Heisuke, and she brought down a particularly powerful strike to his chest. She noted, however, that he was improving steadily day by day. She was growing quite proud of him.

Heisuke collapsed onto the ground, groaning as he grasped his chest. "Ayama-saaan~, that hurt so muuuch~!" He whined. Keiko sighed. "Honestly boy if you think that hurt then you will do very poorly in real battle." She heard Ryunosuke chuckle from his spot under the sakura tree, his arm resting in a relaxed position against his knee. Heisuke huffed as he pushed himself off the ground and pointed an accusing finger at the boy. "Oi! Don't you laugh! It's not like you could do any better, Ryu!"

Before they could continue their bickering, Keiko handed her mock spear to Heisuke on her way to stand above Ryunosuke, gesturing for him to put it away. "So, Ryu. Did you learn anything?" She stood menacingly above him, her arms crossed in a stern manner. He gulped heavily before responding. "Well… I mean I did, sort of…" He started, his voice wavering as he spoke, earning him an unimpressed glare from Keiko. He cowered before her, clearing his throat desperately before he continued. "What stood out the most to me was, er, when Heisuke-san used his weight to push you back. It seems to me that would have been the best opportunity to escape…" Ryunosuke trailed off, unable to bear the weight of Keiko's gaze. He sheepishly looked up at her, praying that his answer had been satisfactory. When he saw the expression on her face, he was surprised to say the least.

Keiko was smiling brightly at him, Heisuke grinning beside her, and holding her hand out to him to help him up. "Very good, Ryu! Had it been a real fight, that exact moment would have been the perfect chance to escape! Force your enemy to stumble and get some distance between you, then you have your opportunity to get away." She said, clearly quite pleased by his answer. "You know, if you put some effort into learning how to fight, you would probably be quite good. I would be willing to teach you, if you want." Ryunosuke accepted her hand and rose to his feet, but shook his head begrudgingly at her offer as the group began to walk out of the courtyard.

"I… I don't want to learn... " He turned his gaze away from his two companions, and Keiko sighed. "Well, alright. But, Ryu," She grabbed onto his sleeve, forcing him to look at her before she continued. "I worry about you, you know. If you ever need my help…" She tightened her grip on his sleeve, silently communicating her intentions. She didn't want someone like Ryunosuke, a kind hearted artist, to fall victim to vicious circumstance. He was brought into the Shinsengumi against his will, given no choice but to stay and do their bidding, and while he was treated fairly for the most part… Keiko found it unbelievably unfair to think that he was completely at their mercy. She hoped that she might be able to help him escape this unjust fate. Ryu looked down, biting his lip, before looking back up at her and nodding in an exaggerated manner. Keiko could see tears threatening to fall from his eyes, and she smiled as she released his sleeve from her grasp.

"That goes for you as well, Heisuke!" She turned on her heel suddenly, stopping Heisuke in his tracks. He looked shocked. "I am a part of the Shinsengumi now, so I want you to know; I'm on your side, you can count on me to be there to help. All you need to do is ask, okay?" Although Keiko didn't touch him, her presence was overbearing and he felt a sudden weight pressing around him. Her gaze held him in place and for some reason, he felt nervous. He gulped and nodded slowly, unable to find words to say. This was enough for her, though, and she smiled.

"Well," She started, turning to face the two boys. "I'm heading to take a bath before dinner, so I'll see you both later on." She waved dismissively as she finished her sentence, turning to walk towards the baths. From the corner of her eye, she could see the two looking sheepishly at each other, both of them apparently still uncomfortable from the afternoon's events. Keiko grinned to herself as she turned around a corner, heading for the baths.

Yes, she was growing quite fond of many of the men here. A frown crossed her face as she thought about it, a sense of unease building in her core as she continued to think on it. They all seemed friendly enough, but she couldn't shake a feeling that the group was hiding something. She just couldn't bring herself to fully trust them. It had been quite a long time since she had trusted anyone, really, and now that the opportunity to do so presented itself, she found that she was incapable of actually lowering her barriers. She liked them all, yes, and she felt an urge to protect them as well. She even felt obligated to train Heisuke, to help him become a stronger warrior. Yet, still she did not trust any of them. Her frown deepened as she felt the unease in her gut grow, her brow furrowing and her gaze lowering to the ground as she walked.

Suddenly, she was snapped from her thoughts as she landed face first into a hard - well, something. She stumbled backward slightly before regaining her composure and throwing a glare at whatever had gotten in her way, as though just by looking at it she would make it move. Her glare didn't last long, however, as her eyes landed on a beaming Shinpachi rather than a wall or a pole, which was what she had been expecting. A blush crept across her cheeks as she realized that she had just walked face first into Shinpachi's firm chest.

She bowed deeply. "I'm terribly sorry, Nagakura-san!" She straightened and rushed to walk past him, only for him to catch her by the arm and hold her in place. She looked at him, mortified that he would keep her here after such embarrassment. Shinpachi chuckled and his smile only grew at the look on her face.

"What's the rush? I don't mind you bumping into me." He said as he released her arm. Keiko looked away in embarrassment, still blushing profusely. Shinpachi sighed. "I know you're a proud woman but it really isn't that big of a deal. What's up with you anyway?" He brought his face closer to hers, trying to examine her expressions. She twisted her face uncomfortably, leaning away from his prying eyes. "What do you mean?" She grumbled. He straightened up, crossing his arms before eyeing her suspiciously.

"You looked upset so I called out to you, and you didn't even respond at all, then you bumped into me. You were totally spacing out!" He accused, slouching his shoulders as though the situation made him tired. Keiko felt her blush return and looked away from him. "Ah. That." She sighed. "Don't worry about it, Nagaku-"

" **AND THEN THERE'S THAT!** " Shinpachi suddenly shouted, raising a fist into the air dramatically. Keiko jumped from his sudden outburst. "W-w-what?!" She shouted back, more than a little shocked by his behaviour. He grinned at her and aggressively grabbed onto her shoulders, causing her even more uneasiness than before. "You keep calling me 'Nagakura-san', it's too polite! It's weird." Keiko deadpanned when she realised how dramatic he was being over such a thing as her being 'too polite'. She sighed, giving him an unimpressed glare.

"What do you want me to call you, then?" she spoke in a monotonous tone, making it very evident that she was 100% finished with his antics for today. He looked thoughtful for a moment, his hold on her loosening slightly, before his grin returned and his grip tightened again.

"By my name! Shinpachi! And I will call you Keiko-"

"If you say 'chan', I will end you." She growled out. Shinpachi laughed out, refusing to release her from his grasp just yet. He admired this woman greatly, but he also wanted to be closer to her. He couldn't put a finger on what he was feeling just yet, but he knew that she had peaked his interest and proven herself to be more than worthy of his respect. Her prideful nature amused him to no end, and her kindness inspired him. He grinned down at her, completely ignoring the half-hearted glare she was directing at him. She sighed in defeat after another moment of him just holding her in place.

"If I call you 'Shinpachi-san', will you be satisfied and let me go? I was planning on having a pleasant bath before all this you know." She looked up at him, pouting. He found himself at a lost for words for a moment, suddenly stricken by the look on her face. He had found her quite beautiful ever since he first saw her, but this pouting face looked… Well, very cute. He mentally shook himself before his usual smile returned to his face and he nodded, releasing her from his grasp at last.

"I won't hold you here any longer, then. Glad we cleared that up, Keiko-san!" He beamed at her again, and she offered a small smile of her own in return before heading towards the baths once again. As she left, she couldn't bring herself to stop smiling. The muscled man had lifted her spirits, even if she still didn't trust any of them, she at least knew that she would enjoy her stay with them. Her heart warmed at the thought of Shinpachi's smile when she said his name, and although she couldn't quite understand why just yet, she felt unbelievably happy.


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hey all, thanks again for continuing to read my story! Just to clarify, I have changed a few things in the timeline to better fit with where I am going with this story. First thing, the group has already changed their name from "Roshigumi" to "Shinsengumi", having somehow earned the Aizu Lord's respect before Keiko entered the picture. Secondly, Ryunosuke started catching on to Serizawa's sickness a little bit before he did in the show. And, of course, I'm adding Keiko into the mix, so a lot of things are going to play out differently from here than how they did in shows/games. So if things seem out of order, they probably are! It just ended up fitting in with my story better to have somethings happen at different times.**

 **Anyway, enjoy this chapter, and feel free to write a review! :)**

Chapter 3

A couple months had passed since Keiko had joined the Shinsengumi, and day by day, she could feel the tension around the headquarters growing steadily. It was clear to anyone that Serizawa and Hijikata barely held back from killing each other, but Keiko could sense that their resolve to avoid conflict was growing thinner as the days went by. More accurately, Hijikata's patience with Serizawa's antics was on the verge of breaking.

A few days prior, during a peacemaking festival with the Sumo organization of Osaka, Serizawa had taken it upon himself to punish a shopkeep for suspected treachery. He had set the man's shop ablaze, without consulting either Hijikata or Kondo, and had done so in front of a very large crowd of civilians. Hijikata was furious and the tensions between those loyal to him and those loyal to Serizawa was thick. Keiko felt a sense of unease growing in her gut, becoming more and more prominent as time passed. She couldn't be sure, but she was beginning to think that perhaps something else was going on which had caused the conflicts to become more severe. She still hadn't discovered what was causing the dark aura which arose from Kyoto, however after spending so much time with the Shinsengumi, she was absolutely sure that it began with them. Her instincts were telling her that _something_ was stirring here, in this wolf den, with these men. She suspected that the commanders knew about it and that it may be the _true_ source of their bitterness.

Keiko was sitting cross legged on the floor of her room, combing through her long hair, as she pondered over these things. She wasn't sure where to start looking, or if she should ask someone about it. She was certain that none of the members would trust her enough yet to divulge such information to her, so perhaps investigating on her own would be a better option.

As she continued to comb out her hair, she heard a knock on the frame of her door. She haphazardly turned her attention to the door as she mumbled for her visitor to enter. Shinpachi stood there, smiling lazily at her as he opened the door.

"Hey, Keiko-san. It's almost dinner time." He said as he leaned in her doorway, his arms folded across his chest.

"Who's cooking?" She asked, focusing on a nasty tangle she was trying to comb out as she spoke.

"Heisuke and… Saito." He said the second man's name with disdain. Keiko giggled at his lack of enthusiasm, but otherwise said nothing on the subject. While she preferred to eat meat, she could stand Saito's love of tofu, and she was far too polite to turn down a meal just because it wasn't to her tastes. She found it amusing that Shinpachi was so affected by such a thing as there being 'too much tofu' in his meal. Shinpachi grinned down at her, despite his displeasure, upon seeing her laugh. However, his smile did not last long. Looking away from her, he cleared his throat nervously.

"Uhh, Keiko-san…" He started, his eyes shifting nervously to look at her, only for him to quickly avert his gaze again. She glanced up at him, confused by his sudden change in attitude. He wasn't normally like this. "Keiko, can I talk to you about something?" He straightened off of the doorway as she nodded, placing her simple comb down and adjusting her position to face him better. He slid the door shut behind him before sitting down across from her, nervously fiddling with his hands as he looked away.

"What's wrong?" She asked, tilting her head in confusion. Shinpachi inhaled deeply and held it for a moment before blowing out, his eyes closed and brows furrowed.

"I wanted to, well… I wanted to apologize to you." He said, finally opening his eyes and looking up at her sheepishly. Keiko's confusion only grew, so he continued. "It's just, I brought you here right when all this chaos was starting, and now it's gotten so out of hand and everyone is so tense! And, and, I know it must be even harder for someone like you, you got here and everyone is all bitter and shit... " He trailed off, looking away from her again. "I just feel bad that I brought a lady here and got you mixed up in all this."

At that last statement, Keiko couldn't help herself, and she started laughing. Heartily, without even trying to hold herself back. She even felt tears begin to form at the corners of her eyes, she was laughing so hard. She could see Shinpachi stiffen at her laughter, only to glare at her and pout after his initial shock wore off.

"Oh, it's not like I'm pouring my heart out here or anything! Geez, you're a cold woman." He snapped, and Keiko continued to chuckled at his little outburst. She smiled at him warmly, taking his hand in hers gently before speaking to him.

"Shinpachi-san." She started, staring straight into his crystal blue eyes. "I'm not laughing at your feelings, but at your interpretation of me." Her smile grew as she saw the confusion enter his face. "I must admit, it is jarring to be called a 'lady' in such a way. And I am very happy that you worry so much about me, but… You must also know, I am not made of glass. Such things that concern you cannot hurt me, and while I do worry about all of you, I am not afraid for myself in the slightest." She squeezed his hand reassuringly, a gentle smile upon her face as she looked at him. Shinpachi looked at least a little stunned, but slowly his own pleasant smile returned. Tentatively, he took her other hand in his, running his thumb over her palm gently.

"You are still a lady, though. In my eyes at least." He smiled gently, still caressing her palm in his hand as he stared at her.

Keiko suddenly pulled her hands away from him, swiftly standing up and walking over to the door. "We should go, dinner will probably be served soon." She said, opening the door as she spoke. Shinpachi turned around, looking unquestionably confused and the tiniest bit dejected. He decided to refrain from saying anything to her and pushed himself off the ground, following behind her to exit the room.

As he slid the door closed, he noticed that she did not stop to wait for him and was already gone. He sighed, mentally kicking himself for overstepping his bounds. Slightly dejected, he headed off for the dining hall to meet up with everyone else.

A few days later, Keiko awoke with a start to the sound of cannon-fire in the distance. She jolted out of bed, listening in earnest to the noises. They sounded far off, yet still within range of hearing, so she assumed still in Kyoto. It was coming from the direction of the Imperial Palace.

She immediately rose from her futon and began to dress herself in her usual clothing. She knew right away that the commanders would want to hold a meeting of some sort, to address the commotion. She made her way to the common room with haste, speed-walking her way down the halls. Upon arrival, she was surprised to find that the only people there to greet her were Hijikata, Sannan, Yamazaki and Shimada. She knocked casually on the frame of the open door to alert the others of her presence before walking in and folding her arms across her chest.

"What do you think is happening out there?" She asked, facing Hijikata. He shook his head, sighing as he did so.

"No idea. It's good timing you got here though." He looked up at her seriously, and she tilted her head a bit in confusion. "I think it would be in our best interests to have you serve as one of our Investigators with Yamazaki and Shimada. I was actually going to have Yamazaki go to fetch you, but you arrived on your own. I want the three of you to head over to where the cannon-fire is coming from and try to find out what you can. As much information as you can dig up, without drawing undue attention to yourselves." He gave his orders curtly, speaking quickly so as to not waste any time. Keiko nodded, unfolding her arms as she turned to leave, pausing at the doorway.

"If you don't mind, I would like to go on my own. I think the three of us in a group might draw more suspicion. We can meet up at the gates here once we've all gathered sufficient information." She turned her head to look at the other two investigators, pausing only long enough to see the two of them nod once. She offered them a small, soft smile before she marched out of the room.

She quickly made her way into town, following the sounds of the cannons. As she had suspected, the sounds were indeed coming from the Imperial castle. She found upon arrival that she was unable to get close to the action, as members of the Choshu domain were scattered about the grounds, threatening anyone who was coming close. She kept to the shadows, dipping in and out of alleyways to avoid any conflict. Eventually she had come as close to the palace gates as she could without gaining any attention, but she felt that she still did not have sufficient information to report back.

Hastily, she found a spot beside a building where she would be able to grab onto a windowsill and hoist herself up. She crouched down, eyeing around her to make sure there were no stray Choshu wandering about the alleyway, before she leapt upwards towards the window. She managed to grab hold of it, taking a moment to steady herself before hoisting herself up enough the catch her foot on it. Leveraging herself with her knee, she lifted up so that she was standing on the windowsill, before launching herself upwards once again to catch onto the edge of the roof. She just barely caught it, growling a bit in frustration as she felt her fingers slip ever so slightly. However, she was able to secure her grasp, and she managed to pull herself up.

She sat there for a moment, sighing heavily from the effort, before she turned over into a crouching position and made her way across the rooftops - towards the palace.

She leapt steadily from roof to roof, keeping her footing light to remain unnoticed. Finally, she reached the last building and she had a clear view of the palace gates. She could see a large group of Samurai gathered before the gates, bearing two different flags. She could see half of the army carrying the Satsuma flag, and the other half having raised the Aizu flag.

 _Odd…_ She thought to herself. She had always heard the Satsuma and Aizu were at odds with each other, yet here they stood, banners raised and standing in opposition of… The Choshu? _Very odd._ Keiko was never one for politics, so she didn't fully understand why these factions were suddenly changing their alliances, but even she knew that such things were not normal. From her perch on the roof, she spotted Yamazaki and Shimada, somehow having made their way into a corner _between_ the Satsuma-Aizu army and the Choshu army. Keiko grinned to herself, impressed by their stealth.

Taking in one final glance at the scene before her, she turned to head back to the Shinsengumi headquarters.

She was the first to make it back to headquarters, so she took the time to lean against the front gates and gather her thoughts. It still didn't make sense to her, but she could sense how tense the air had been between the three factions. While the Satsuma and Aizu may have appeared to be working together, she could tell that they were barely able to do so peacefully. It was only their animosity towards the Choshu which had kept their swords sheathed and their mouths shut. A precarious truce indeed.

Keiko's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps. She looked up to see Yamazaki and Shimada, walking briskly towards her. She straightened off of the post she had been leaning on to greet them.

"What did you learn?" She asked, getting straight to the point. They discussed with her much of the same as what she had seen, however they had been unable to discern that the Aizu had been standing among the Satsuma troops as well. She shared her own information with the other two, who nodded with frowns on their faces as she did so. After sharing all that they had learned, the three of them headed back to the common room to divulge their findings with the commanders.

"The Satsuma and the Aizu? Opposing the Choshu? Are you certain?" Kondo asked, seeming quite surprised by the information. Keiko nodded, looking him in the eye.

"They had both Satsuma and Aizu banners raised, guarding the gates. And it was the Choshu banners which were patrolling the streets, trying to get in." She restated. Kondo closed his eyes in thought before Hijikata spoke.

"But why are the feuding Aizu and Satsuma domains teaming up?" Hijikata asked to noone in particular, his brow furrowed in thought.

"Hmph. It merely means the world is not as simple as you simple-minded louts." Serizawa spoke in a bored tone, looking over at Hijikata and Kondo as though they were children. Keiko glared at him, but remained silent. Hijikata grit his teeth.

"What was that?!" He spit, glaring daggers at Serizawa. Serizawa chuckled before continuing. "Both the Satsuma and the Aizu have shunned the Choshu because of how they enter and leave the Imperial Court as if it were their own. Clashing ideals is a minor problem before the chance to crush the Choshu." Serizawa looked down at the rest of the group, a smug smile on his lips as he finished his speech. Keiko huffed as she looked away, still not understanding the thought processes of these domain lords. She supposed she would never really understand politics. Hijikata turned his head away in defiance.

"Thanks for the lecture." He said in a slightly sarcastic tone, his head up proudly. "I don't care what's in the minds of opportunists who change their attitudes based on the situation." He spoke indignantly.

"So, what should we do?" It was Shinpachi who spoke up. The commanders turned their attentions to him, Kondo sighing as he tilted his head down. Keiko leaned back on her hands, stretching one of her legs out in front of her. She was quite bored of this entire situation, if she was being honest. Kondo sighed deeply before he spoke.

"We cannot move the squad without orders from the Aizu domain." He said solemnly. Hijikata looked up in dismay. "So we have to wait?" He said begrudgingly.

Everyone was silent for a moment. Keiko looked around the room. Everyone had solemn or sulking expressions, some looked nervous, others looked disappointed. It was a moment later before someone spoke, that someone was a determined Serizawa.

"We're leaving!" He said, his tone stern. "We'll lose the chance to earn distinction if we just sit around!" He stood up abruptly, facing the other commanders. With a determined look on his face, Kondo nodded before he also got to his feet, followed shortly by the rest of the squad. All of them looked equally as resolute. Keiko opted to remain seated, earning a questioning look from Hijikata. She grinned up at him.

"At least one person should stay to defend the headquarters, don't you think?" She said lazily, before straightening up to sit cross legged. "Besides that, didn't you want me on the Investigator team so that I wouldn't draw attention? A woman bearing the Shinsengumi coat would not bring the respect you seek. They would dismiss you upon arrival if you showed up with a woman among your troops." Keiko looked up at Hijikata, her cold blue eyes piercing his violet ones, and he nodded in agreement.

"You're right." He said as he turned away. Keiko watched as everyone filed out of the room, determination in their eyes. After a few moments, she heard the sound of a horse galloping from the gates, then being brought to an abrupt stop. "I bring orders!" She heard a man shout, and she smiled to herself knowing that the group of men were being asked to participate and were being given the opportunity to distinguish themselves they had so yearned for.

She turned her head to Ryunosuke, who had also remained seated on the ground next to her, and offered him a warm smile. He seemed a bit nervous, so she reached out a hand to grasp his shoulder in reassurance.

"Don't worry, Ryu." She squeezed his shoulder gently. "They will be okay. They're all strong you know." Ryunosuke nodded, a small smile on his face. They both rose from their seats and headed out of the room, Keiko to get in a bit of training with her mock-glaive while the men were out and Ryunosuke to start on some laundry to try and get his mind off of the potential battle his friends were walking into.

Some time later, Inoue returned with a few of the men, a gentle smile on his face as he came back. Ryunosuke ran up to him urgently, shouting out his name desperately. Inoue gave him a short nod as he approached. "Inoue-san, how did it go?" Ryunosuke asked as he ran up to the older man.

"Everyone carried out their duties safely." Inoue replied with a smile. Relief washed over Ryunosuke, his own smile finally returning after a day's worth of worrying. Ryunosuke couldn't help the wide grin that spread across his face. "Could you help me prepare dinner for everyone?" Inoue asked gently, his smile never leaving his face. Ryunosuke blurted out an enthusiastic "Sure!" before following Inoue towards the kitchen. Just around the corner, Keiko was leaning and listening. She smiled in relief from the news, then lazily turned to walk back to her room. She was sure that her comrades would be quite rowdy tonight in celebration of their success.

She smiled despite herself. She looked down to see her hands had been shaking, realization hitting her hard. Despite her reassuring words to Ryunosuke, she had indeed been worried. Her mind jumped to Shinpachi and Heisuke, their friendly smiles and their warm personalities, and her heart sunk to think that something bad might have happened to them. _Perhaps I should not refrain from participating in such missions in the future._ She thought as she walked. _I… I don't know what I would do if something happened to them…_


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Dusk had fallen over the Shinsengumi headquarters as Keiko walked lazily towards the well in the courtyard. She and Heisuke had had a particularly rough training session that day, lasting far too long with both of them pushing themselves far too hard. After her sense of pride in Heisuke's steady improvement had worn off, the burning in her throat had begun to become more prominent. So, she found herself wandering over to the well to quench her growing thirst.

From around a corner, she suddenly heard urgent footsteps, followed by Harada's voice. "Ryunosuke! Have you seen Niimi-san?" She heard him ask, urgency evident in his tone. She stopped from behind the corner, listening intently. _Niimi-san? Serizawa's lap dog?_ She thought idly.

"Nope, I haven't seen him today." Ryunosuke responded. "Is there a problem?" He added, almost as an afterthought. Keiko leaned against the wall, focused entirely on what Harada's answer would be.

"He's gone!" He stated angrily. "He took the Ochimizu and vanished!" Keiko jolted upright, a feeling of dread filling her gut, although she did not know why. _Ochimizu?_ She had never heard the term before. From the way Harada had spoken it, as the the word left a foul taste in his mouth, she knew that it must be something quite dreadful. If the ever calm and collected Harada Sanosuke was this worked up, she knew that something was wrong. She grit her teeth, resolving herself to tail Harada and learn more. She knew she had not yet earned enough trust from the Shinsengumi for them to discern what it was voluntarily, and while she was not fond of spying on her comrades, it was necessary to discover what the group was hiding.

She was able to follow Harada unnoticed. She tailed him until he eventually turned into Hijikata's room, looking around suspiciously before he closed the door. He had not seen her. She edged her way closer to the room, ducking under the porch silently. There she hid, patiently, listening as several new footsteps crept into the room. Finally, everyone had gathered and they began their meeting.

"I suspected that he'd try to pull something sooner or later," She heard Hijikata's voice, quieter than she was admittedly used to hearing it. "But to think he ran off with the Ochimizu…"

"What should we do, Hijikata-san?" Shinpachi's voice, also quite a lot quieter than she had ever heard him before, to the point where she almost hadn't recognized it. "Don't we need to hurry and find out where he went?"

"Considering the weight of the situation, I would love to send all of our men out to find Niimi-san." Hijikata said wishfully. "But with the Ochimizu in the picture, I can only send the handful of us that know about the medicine to look for him." _Medicine?_ Keiko narrowed her eyes in distrust.

"Indeed. Fortunately, he did not take the men he turned into furies and experimented on." She heard Sannan add. He sounded utterly unaffected by the topic at hand, something which made shivers run down Keiko's spine. He spoke the words "experimented on" so easily, she could picture his cold eyes half lidded with indifference as he spoke. She grit her teeth. She was uncovering the source of the horrid aura which had drawn her away from her home in the first place. A strange medicine, experiments being done on men, and all of it was being kept a secret by the men she had come to call friends. To have heard Shinpachi's voice among them, she couldn't help but feel a slight sense of betrayal. She vaguely heard that Harada had spoken, but she had been so caught up in her thoughts that his words hadn't registered. She pulled herself away from her racing mind to continue to listen to the conversation.

The next to speak up was Okita, in his usual lazy tone. "But wouldn't that man do whatever it takes to sell the Ochimizu?" He brought up a valid point.

"Anyway, finding Niimi-san is our top priority." She heard Kondo speak, as clear and determined as ever, and her heart sank just a little bit deeper to think that an honourable man such as him would be involved in something shady like this. "Keep your eyes peeled when you conduct your patrols." "Sir!" They all replied in a low, urgent whisper. Keiko lowered her eyes, listening to the sounds of many pairs of footsteps exiting the room. She waited patiently for her chance to silently slip away, long after all the others had left. She made a mental note to keep a close watch on everyone from here on out.

Over the next few weeks, she saw them all busily trying to find Niimi-san. Heisuke had Ryunosuke draw out detailed pictures of Niimi-san, all of them wasting no time in their effort to locate the traitorous man. Keiko remained silent on her newfound knowledge, watching and listening patiently to everything they did. Shinpachi had even asked her to assist them, still not offering any details but insisting that it was very important for them to find him. Keiko had offered Shinpachi a pleasant grin, nodding and telling him she would do her best to help. She surprised even herself with how easy it was to hide her own comprehension of the situation.

With every passing day, the dark aura she had originally felt grew stronger, it's presence taking over her senses. It smelt of death and decay, with the iron pang of blood. She could hear it in the night, the screams of innocent women and men who were ill-fated enough to have been caught in its grasp. She heard it roaring in the night, screaming for blood. She knew now that "it" was once a man, and that whatever this 'Ochimizu' was, it was probably the cause.

Every night, she would silently make her way to Hijikata's room, where she had discovered the captains often had secret meetings, and listen in on their conversations. Every day, she would watch and listen carefully to the other members of the Shinsengumi. Finally, one fateful day, she noticed Yamazaki headed towards Hijikata's room, an intense look in his eyes. She followed him noiselessly, hiding behind a corner and listening intently as they exchanged their greetings.

"The inspectors in town just informed me that they saw who they think was Niimi refer to himself as Tanaka Iori," He said with urgency. Keiko narrowed her eyes. "Before entering a high-class restaurant called Yamao in Gion-Shinchi."

"Souji, Saito, you up to this?" Hijikata asked immediately, followed closely by a quick "Sir!" from Saito and a casual "But of course." from Okita. "If we try apprehending him inside, there is no need for a large group." Hijikata said with certainty. "It'll be just the four of us."

 _Five of us._ Keiko clarified to herself. She had every intention of tailing her comrades to the restaurant, and finally discovering what _exactly_ was going on in this city. "Let's hurry and get this over with." She heard Okita lazily remark as he got up, and she hurried to back away from the room, preparing to follow the four men.

As night fell, the men ran through the streets towards the restaurant, with Keiko following closely from the rooftops. She heard Hijikata order Yamazaki to go around the back, and she swiftly followed suit. She would probably have to either find a way to sneak around the man, or she would have to forcefully render him unconscious. Either way, she had already resolved herself to find the truth, and the answers she sought were right inside this building.

She followed Yamazaki to find him sneaking into the back entrance, and she wasted no time in leaping down from the rooftop to dart inside after him. Upon entering, he was nowhere in sight. She looked around, closing her eyes to listen carefully. She could hear a commotion coming from the rooms upstairs, doors being slammed open and feet running through the halls. She lunged forward, rushing to get upstairs.

As she made her way up the stairs, she heard Niimi's voice, desperate and shocked, arguing with an eerily calm Hijikata. She pushed herself to go faster, before the trio could kill Niimi and thus get rid of the information she sought. However, she was forced to stop suddenly, as Yamazaki stood in the hall ahead of her, sword in hand and pointed straight at her. In her rush to leave, Keiko had left her glaive in her room, so she stood before him, weaponless.

"What do you think you're doing, Ayama?" Yamazaki's voice was laced with venom as he glared daggers at Keiko. She glared back, standing her ground. She heard yelling coming from the room up the hall, followed shortly by the distinct sounds of swords cutting through flesh. She narrowed her eyes at Yamazaki.

"Yamazaki… We don't have time for this." She spit out urgently. However, he held his ground, never breaking eye contact. "Why did you follow us? What do you know?" He nearly growled, and she could see the distrust in his eyes. She sighed, lowering her gaze. When she looked back up at him, it was with apologetic eyes.

"I'm sorry to have to do this to you," She spoke earnestly. She really didn't want to do it, but she wasn't about to let this opportunity slip from her hands. She lunged forward with incredible speed, reaching Yamazaki in the blink of an eye. She saw his eyes widen in shock, but did not allow him the time to recover. She punched him in the gut, hard. He coughed out in surprise, before he fell limp against her arm. She gently laid him down on the ground. "Really. I'm very sorry." She whispered gently, just as his eyes closed and he lost consciousness.

Keiko could hear Niimi's hysteric laughter, his voice sounding strange and distorted. "Hajime-kun, up!" She heard Okita's voice, followed by a cry from Niimi and a loud crash. She stopped just outside the door, peering around the corner to peek at the scene inside.

Her eyes widened in horror.

Niimi's hair had been bleached white, his eyes now a swirling crimson. He had a maniacal smile on his face, grinning as he fought effortlessly against Okita. Saito was on the ground, stunned, while Hijikata caught his breath against a wall. Niimi suddenly grabbed Okita's arm, flipping him over and onto the ground. He raised his sword, about to drive it through his heart, before Hijikata let out an urgent "Souji!" and lunged at the creature before him. Niimi chuckled darkly.

"You're slow, too slow. Your strikes are like that of a child!" He laughed out his insult. Keiko could take no more of this, the disgust in her gut having long since boiled over. She could see, plain as day, that whatever Niimi had become was far stronger than the three men who came to slay him.

But he wasn't anywhere near her level.

She burst in suddenly, rushing past Niimi to grab Okita's sword from his hand. He grunted out in surprise; "Huh? What're you- HEY!" He reached out to grab his sword back, but he wasn't quick enough to catch her.

"You… You wretched creature." Keiko muttered, her speed betraying her true power as she rushed forward towards Niimi. "You are UTTER _FILTH_!" She screamed as their swords clashed, Niimi's confident smile breaking instantly as she pushed him back. He tried to swiftly move behind her, but she caught his sword effortlessly with hers, her icy blue eyes searing into his with animosity and disgust.

"B-but… _How_!?" He erupted, stumbling backwards as she glared at him. He saw it then, something in her eyes seemed… Different, somehow. They were _glowing._ They had always been bewitching, but now they seemed ethereal. Her pupils had dilated into slits, her eyes narrowed in undiluted hatred. She looked predatory, and he certainly felt like he had become her prey.

She lunged forward again, too fast for even him to see, and when she appeared again in front of him, he coughed out and all he could taste was blood.

Niimi looked down to see that Keiko had plunged her borrowed sword deep into his chest, right through his heart. He looked back up at her, to see her face only inches away from his, her predatory eyes burning into his soul. He couldn't look away, he could feel his consciousness slipping away from him, but all he could do was stare helplessly. "Die, wretch." She whispered, twisting the sword as she spit the words. He grit his teeth at the pain, but still could not bring himself to look away from her eyes.

This woman… He could see it now. He had gained so much power, and had been able to easily fend off three of the Shinsengumi's best warriors, yet she had killed him without breaking a sweat. Yes, indeed, he could see it now. This woman, with her impressive skill and bewitching beauty and captivating voice, and the immense _power_ that radiated off of her…

As he died, the thought hit him. It seemed so obvious now. _Of course,_ He thought, his eyes sliding shut.

 _She isn't human._


	6. Chapter 5

**A/N: ...So it's been a while since I last posted...**

 **Let me tell you all something. This chapter was EXTREMELY difficult to write. I can't even tell you why, because I have no idea, but for the longest time I just could not find the inspiration or motivation to get the words out for this chapter. I would write a few sentences then get stumped, and that happened for weeks! Then, literally four hours ago, I watched one of the Hakuouki musicals (Hukumyu LIVE) and all of a sudden my brain was like alright I know what to do now. That's it.**

 **Anyway... Moral of the story is writing is dumb sometimes, I'm very sorry for the wait, and I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! And thanks to my reviewers (all two of you! I love you guys!) and to everyone who favourited and/or decided to follow my story. I hope you all continue to read and review my writing! :)**

Niimi's body slowly slid off of Keiko's borrowed sword, landing with a loud _thud_ at her feet. She glared down at his corpse, her disgust plainly written on her face. After a moment of silence, she turned her glare to her comrades of the Shinsengumi.

She tossed Okita back his sword, not bothering to even try to be gentle with it. He caught it, glaring right back at her with a look of pure distrust in his eyes. She turned her ice cold gaze away from the men to look at a small vial which had rolled out from one of Niimi's sleeves when he fell. Keiko knelt down to pick up the vial, examining it's contents. It contained a deep crimson liquid which almost seemed to glow under the pale light from the moon shining in through the door. Keiko's eyes narrowed in distaste.

"I am assuming you all knew about this." She spoke, but it wasn't a question. She didn't bother to look at the men she spoke to as she turned the vial over in her hand, continuing to examine it. "This must be that stuff. The Ochimizu." She noticed the men stiffen when she mentioned it. Sighing, she turned to Hijikata, her frozen stare now directed entirely on him, and his own heated glare directed back at her.

"Where did you hear of that?" Hijikata demanded. Keiko snorted, as though the answer should have been obvious.

"From _you_." She placed a hand on her hip as the two of them continued to glare at each other. "So you spied on us?!" Okita demanded, his voice raised. Keiko turned her cold stare to him and noticed that he had yet to sheath his sword.

She did not break eye contact with him, daring him to try something, as she spoke. "Yes. I did." She turned her gaze back on Hijikata before continuing. "Several times actually. After I'd heard Harada asking _Ryunosuke_ about Niimi and the Ochimizu." Her tone was accusatory, and Hijikata did not miss the implications of her words. While he was not obligated to tell Keiko anything regarding the Shinsengumi's research, it was obscene to think that he would allow an _outsider_ to have such knowledge. Hijikata nearly growled at the accusation, his fist closed tightly around the hilt of his sword, ready to draw it with a moments notice.

"Ibuki had accidentally encountered some men who had taken the Ochimizu," It was Saito who answered Keiko's unspoken accusation. "And as he is under Serizawa's protection, we could not dispose of him." Keiko stared into Saito's eyes, and was met with a stare equally as frozen as her own. She searched his eyes for a moment longer, before turning her attention back to Hijikata.

"What is your objective?" Okita hissed out from his crouching position on the floor. Hijikata and Saito looked at Keiko expectantly, all of their eyes filled with a potent distrust. Keiko sighed, allowing her eyes to close and her arms to drop to her sides. When she looked back at the men, her gaze had warmed slightly, and she seemed suddenly very tired.

"To be honest, it's changed quite a bit." She started, shifting on her feet in discomfort. "I… Don't think it's fair to discuss this with only you three. I feel the others should know as well." She could see Okita about to demand something of her, so she quickly continued. "In short, I was searching for something, and I thought I might find it if I joined your organization. However, I'm not so sure what I should do from here." Her stare drifted down to the vial in her palm as she idly fiddled with it. She held it out in front of her, turning to stare pointedly at Hijikata, a knowing look in her eyes.

"This is what I was looking for. I truly think that Kondo and Serizawa should be present for this conversation." She said the words with finality.

Hijikata sighed, his hand finally falling away from his sword, and nodded. Saito immediately relaxed, nodding once towards Hijikata. The only one still worked up was Okita.

"That's it? You think we can trust you just from _that_?!" He snarled, pointing his sword at her face. However, Saito placed a firm hand on Okita's shoulder, shaking his head slightly. "I think we should hear what she has to say. Besides, she did technically concede, she gave you back your sword." Hijikata said dismissively, gesturing towards Okita's blade. Okita grit his teeth, looking angrily back and forth between the people present, but ultimately he sheathed his sword.

"By the way, where is Yamazaki?" Hijikata turned to Keiko, eyeing her suspiciously. Keiko looked away guiltily, her eyes lowering to the floor. "Unfortunately… He was blocking my path when I tried to get here. I had to fight him before I could make it to this room. He is fine, just unconscious." Keiko exited the room as she spoke, pointing to the end of the hallway where Yamazaki lay motionless on the floor. Hijikata glared at her as he cautiously followed her out of the room, the group heading to retrieve their unconscious comrade.

The five of them returned to headquarters, bringing with them Niimi's body and the rest of the Ochimizu he had on his person. Hijikata called for Kondo, Sannan, and Serizawa to join the group in the main hall for a discussion on the night's events.

In the center of the hall sat Keiko, her arms bound tightly behind her back. She looked bored, and more than a little uncomfortable. She waited patiently for the men to settle themselves across from her and address her first, being careful not to offend any of them by speaking out of turn. She didn't want them to further dislike her. It was Serizawa who spoke first.

"So, is one of you going to tell me why I was summoned here, at this horrible hour, with a woman bound in front of me?" He did not sound overly impressed. Keiko frowned at his attitude. This was going to be tougher than she anticipated.

"Keiko spied on us and, as a result, learned of the Ochimizu. She followed us to the restaurant when we went to deal with Niimi, and intervened during the fight." Hijikata summed up Keiko's actions, and she couldn't help but to scowl at how he left out the part about her _saving_ them. Serizawa seemed to notice the bitter expression on her face and smirked.

"Do you have anything to say about this, Keiko?" He asked, and she immediately lifted her head to look directly into his eyes.

"With all due respect to Hijikata-san, Saito-san, and Okita-san, they would have died if I had not have intervened." She replied, never breaking eye contact. Serizawa raised his brows at her statement, glancing towards Hijikata. Hijikata looked away, glaring daggers at the wall. "I can't say that she's wrong." He said bitterly. "Niimi took that damned medicine and he had full control of himself, he was completely sane. He gained unbelievable strength and speed… I hate to say this, but yes. At least one of us may have died without Ayama's intervention. However…" Hijikata then looked pointedly at Keiko, his gaze like fire. "While we're on that subject, it makes no sense that you were able to not just defend yourself from Niimi, but that you single-handedly disposed of him. You moved just as fast as him, and you outmatched him in strength. How, exactly, was that possible?"

Keiko averted her gaze, growing more and more uncomfortable by the minute. She clenched her jaw, staring intently at the wall. She was determined not to answer, this was one thing they absolutely _could not_ know about her. She could feel the group of men staring at her, waiting, but for the life of her she couldn't think of something to tell them. The silence was growing unbearably uncomfortable, until at long last Kondo broke it with his firm yet gentle voice.

"Ayama, you know what will happen if you aren't truthful with us." His voice was firm, and commanded her attention. She looked at him and was met with pleading eyes, and in that moment she wanted to tell him everything. There was something about Kondo that just made a person feel safe, he was so honest and caring towards all of his men. Everyone knew that they could trust him with their lives, and right then Keiko felt that way too. But still, she held her tongue, her fear outweighing her desire to trust in her comrades. Kondo sighed, looking dejectedly towards the floor.

"You do realize that if you refuse to answer, we will kill you." Sannan spoke matter-of-factly. "You will try." Keiko barked back with a cold glare, but she clamped her mouth shut instantly in regret. She looked desperately between the four men, before finally finding it in herself to give them something of an explanation.

"Look… I cannot tell you what I am." she spoke, choosing her words very carefully. "I will tell you that I'm… Not exactly like you. I have kept this from… Well, people like you, for a very long time. What I am does not belong in your world, and-"

"Then why are you here?" Hijikata barked, interrupting Keiko mid-sentence. Keiko's gaze hardened as she stared at him. "The Ochimizu." She stated simply. She turned her attention back to the other men.

"I live atop a mountain far north from here. I was able to, uhm, I guess I was able to kind of sense the effects of the Ochimizu. It is something else which does _not_ belong in your world. It is dangerous, not only to your people but to the balance of the world."

"So you seek to maintain that balance?" Sannan asked, his voice eerily calm. Keiko nodded. "Precisely. The Ochimizu is artificial power, it is a darkness which consumes a person. Once someone has taken something so dark, they can never be cleansed of that stain. It's disgusting, and in my opinion it should be disposed of." Keiko looked sad as she spoke. It was dreadful to think that most of the men who had taken it thus far, had been forced to do so. She didn't want to think about the fact that her comrades were the ones doing the forcing.

"So do you intend to 'dispose' of us who create the Ochimizu, then?" Sannan's voice took on a sudden chill, and he was staring at Keiko with a murderous glare. Keiko stared back at him with distrust, her own gaze turning just as cold. "No." She stated simply. "I joined the Shinsengumi with the intent of finding out what was going on. I have done that now, but I will not dishonour myself by killing any of you." Hijikata snorted at her remark about dishonour, but she cut him off before he could further accuse her.

"Despite what you may think of me, I consider all of you to be my comrades." She turned her gaze to Kondo, holding eye contact with him. "I joined you knowing that this may be the outcome. I know that I cannot convince you to stop production of the Ochimizu. I _will_ ask you to proceed with caution, and to be more responsible with your experimentation. I will help you, if you need it, and if you go too far I will stop you. But I will not kill any of my comrades. It is not my place to kill people unnecessarily, and it would be very difficult for me to harm my friends. I might have secrets, but I am not untrustworthy." Her gaze had softened as she spoke, and with a smile she turned to Hijikata. "With all due respect Hijikata-san, I think I proved my worth at the restaurant tonight."

The two of them stared at one another for a long time. Keiko's cold eyes burned with determination, while Hijikata's violet gaze was just as heated as when they were facing off against each other the first night they met. Finally, Hijikata sighed and closed his eyes, raising his hand to his forehead in mild annoyance.

"Alright, alright. I admit it, you were invaluable during tonight's fight. Even though you weren't invited…" He muttered the last part, but Keiko still heard and couldn't suppress a giggle at his comment. She heard Kondo sigh loudly, visibly relaxing. Serizawa and Sannan continued to watch Keiko, Sannan with distrust and Serizawa with intrigue. Hijikata rose to his feet, moving behind Keiko to finally untie her. She immediately stretched her arms out in front of her, curling and uncurling her fingers which had lost feeling after being so tightly bound for so long.

"You know, if you want me as one of your Investigators you really should fill me in on important information." Keiko said with a bright smile on her face. Serizawa snickered at her remark.

"Trust goes both ways, woman." He stated bluntly, a smirk on his face as he casually strolled out of the hall. Sannan followed closely after him, casting Keiko one last distrustful glance as he left. Keiko turned to look back at Hijikata and Kondo, both of whom had tired looks on their faces.

"I can't stand the guy, but this time he's right Ayama." Hijikata said as he suppressed a yawn. "I understand if you can't divulge everything right away, but we won't ever be able to fully trust you if you are keeping secrets from us."

"I understand. I just... I need time." She looked away, clenching her jaw. She was determined not to say anything more on the matter. Hijikata and Kondo exchanged a look before nodding at her. The two of them stood up, and Hijikata stepped forward to offer Keiko his hand. She stared at him for a moment, but gratefully accepted his offer of assistance.

She was relieved that after the night's events, she could still remain with the Shinsengumi. She hadn't realized when exactly it happened, but she had come to love being there. She truly thought of these men as her friends, she worried about them and laughed with them and ate her meals with them. She could feel them slowly breaking down the walls surrounding her heart, steadily forcing her to open up to them. Perhaps the most amazing part was that she didn't even notice it happening, she just gradually came to accept them. She could only hope that the same was happening for the rest of them, and that they considered her to be their comrade as well.

The three exited the room, all of them sluggish and tired. Finally, after a very long night, Keiko headed for her room for a long awaited rest.


	7. Chapter 5 (and a half)

**A/N: OH HEY look it's two chapters in 24 hours! Kind of. This isn't a full chapter, it's just a little bit of Shinpachi/Keiko fluff to add in to the story. Enjoy. :)**

Chapter 5.5

Keiko awoke with a start to the sound of someone knocking obnoxiously on her door frame. After the previous night's events, she had been more tired than usual and it seemed that she had slept in as a result. She sighed, pushing herself into a sitting position.

"Yes I hear you." She said in a monotonous tone, glaring at the door. It slid open slightly, and Shinpachi stuck his head in, a huge smile on his face.

"I didn't take you for a heavy sleeper! I've been knocking for a while!" He exclaimed, and she only grunted in response. He beamed at her, obviously amused by her disheveled appearance and her lackluster attitude. Keiko rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, forcing herself to stand up. "How long do I have before breakfast?" She spoke without enthusiasm, sluggishly making her way over to a cupboard which held her day clothes and her comb.

"Not long. You _really_ slept in." Shinpachi snickered as he leaned in the doorway, watching with mirth as Keiko's expression quickly changed from an unenthused tiredness to utter horror. "You should have come sooner!" She exclaimed, dropping the comb in her hands and rushing to grab her clothing. "Shut the door! Don't be pervy!" She threw a shoe at him as she yelled, rushing to undress from her sleeping yukata. She could hear him bellow with laughter at her outburst as he shut the door behind him.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're cute when you're angry? Keiko-ch-"

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Keiko snarled, cutting him off, only to be met with more thunderous laughter. She _hated_ being addressed as 'chan'. She had never considered herself to be cute, and she had always had a certain pride that she just couldn't let go of. Perhaps she was too prideful, but she absolutely _refused_ to belittle herself to such nonsense. It just… Didn't suit her.

"You better hurry or there won't be any food left." Shinpachi teased, and Keiko huffed as she pulled her sleeves on and secured them in place. She hastily tied her hair into a ponytail, hoping that would hide it's messiness. She grabbed one of her flats and slid it onto her foot, desperately looking around to where she had thrown the other one. She ran to the door, peering down at the floor where the shoe _should_ have been. She glared at the silhouette of her muscular companion, huffing as she slammed the door open.

Shinpachi jumped at the sudden noise behind him, turning slightly to see a _very_ unimpressed Keiko standing in front of him with her arms crossed. He noticed that she had tied her hair into a high ponytail rather than just tying the ends, and he didn't dislike the look on her. She still looked disheveled and tired, he noticed that her sleeves weren't evenly placed and the bow around her waist was tied haphazardly. And to top her look off, she only had one shoe on. Shinpachi bit his lip, trying desperately to suppress his laughter, his hands tucked tightly behind his back.

"Give it back." Keiko demanded, staring daggers at him. Shinpachi looked away innocently, leaning back on his heels slightly. "What do you mean, Keiko-san? Are you missing something?" He asked casually, barely holding back from snickering. Keiko's glare hardened and, despite himself, he couldn't hold in his laughter anymore. He still kept his hands firmly behind his back, but he allowed himself to laugh heartily at the expression on her face. She huffed and pouted, placing one of her hands on her hip and holding the other out expectantly.

"I know you have it. Give it back!" Keiko couldn't keep her menacing glare while Shinpachi laughed like that, so she opted to pout instead. When she saw he wasn't budging she sighed. "Honestly how old are you? This is very childish." She stated as she glanced off to the side. Shinpachi chuckled. "Even so, your expression was worth it." He stated simply, finally bringing forward her lost shoe. Keiko let out a relieved breath and went to take it, only for Shinpachi to suddenly pull his hand back. Keiko stared at his hand for a moment, then cast him an unimpressed glare. He smirked, raising a brow at her. He took a step back from her when she reached out again, then stepped to the side of her, dodging her attempts.

Finally, Keiko snapped, her pride getting the better of her. She bent down, took off her other shoe, and proceeded to violently hurl it at Shinpachi's face. He dodged it without much effort, but was surprised by the outburst nonetheless.

"There! Have both of them! Are you happy now?!" She exclaimed, heat reaching across her face as her frustration surged. Shinpachi only chuckled. "Yeah I'd say I'm pretty happy today." He beamed at her. Keiko huffed as she stormed away from him, leaving both of her shoes behind.

That man! He could be so frustrating, and to keep both of them from breakfast?! She was beyond angry at this point. Hunger and tiredness were clouding her mind and making her more and more irritated, and his antics were only serving to worsen her mood. She could vaguely hear him calling out to her, trying to get her attention again, but she was adamant about ignoring him. She stormed towards the dining hall, barefoot, with an apologetic Shinpachi on her heels.

She arrived at the hall, visibly irate, and slid the door open. To her surprise, there was no one in the room. She stood there, staring at the empty dining hall, blinking a few times in confusion. Shinpachi caught up with her and gently took her hand, pulling her into the hall.

"Surprise…" He murmured, trying to be careful not to set her off again. He gently set her shoes down on the floor outside the room then walked over to where two breakfasts were placed on the floor. He gestured to them, a small smile on his face. Keiko was stunned, she had no idea what was going on. Shinpachi sighed as he sat down casually in front of one of the meals.

"I heard from Kondo that you had a bit of a rough night last night." He began, motioning for her to sit next to him. She did so hesitantly, still looking at him in confusion as he continued. "Everyone else actually had breakfast really early this morning, and they've all begun their duties already. I've got today off, and I thought it would be nice for you to be able to sleep in for once, especially after a tough night. So I, erhm, I made this." He spoke quietly as he gestured to the meal in front of them, and a light blush touched his face as he did. Keiko looked down at the meal, her eyes softening. She felt her heart stirring and her throat close up, and suddenly she couldn't find words to say to him.

The two of them sat in silence for a moment, before Keiko's hunger betrayed her and a low rumble sounded from her stomach. She blushed slightly, before picking up her chopsticks to begin eating. "Thank you." She murmured, giving Shinpachi a soft glance before she started eating her meal. She saw him sport his signature wide grin from the corner of her eye, before he also settled in to enjoy his meal.

To her surprise, the food was actually quite good. She noted that he was a fairly skilled cook, and she found herself wanting to see what other things he would surprise her with. He could be frustratingly childish sometimes, and everything about him was loud and large. Yet, he was very thoughtful and sweet, and he had many different skills. She respected him as a warrior and as a man, and she found that she was growing to trust him. She felt like she could rely on him to be there for her and to keep her secrets.

She pondered over her growing affections for the man beside her as the two of them peacefully ate their meals together. She looked over at him to see him heartily eating his meal, a pleasant expression on his face, and she couldn't stop herself from smiling.

 **PS. If you haven't already, please feel free to check out my other story - Lucky Cat. It's an Okita Souji fic, with a twist! Also I only ever write it when I'm drinking, so that's fun I guess. Thanks for reading guys! :)**


	8. Chapter 6

**A/N: This is a longer one guys, and things are finally starting to happen! Let me know what you all think of this latest chapter, it was really fun to write this one! Enjoy and thanks for reading! :)**

As the weeks passed by, tensions began to grow steadily higher between Serizawa and the other commanders. The aggressive and violent acts which Serizawa was known for did not cease, despite many discussions and warnings from the other leaders of the group. From what Keiko could discern, Kondo had even tried to have a heartfelt talk with Serizawa, a naive attempt at forcing the prideful man into submission. Keiko knew his type though, and she knew what his fate would be. His head was set to roll, she just did not know when it would happen.

Not to mention the illness Ryunosuke had mentioned to her before.

If the Shinsengumi did not take Serizawa's life, whatever illness he was hiding surely would. Without a doubt, Keiko knew that Serizawa's life would soon be coming to a violent and bitter end. And she was overcome with worry.

She really couldn't care less about Serizawa, from the first day they had met she hadn't liked him. He was loud, violent, impulsive, and selfish. However, he was the only thing standing between Ryunosuke and the rest of the Shinsengumi. If Serizawa were to perish, Ryunosuke would surely be disposed of shortly after. He simply knew too much, too many of the Shinsengumi's most guarded secrets had been lay bare in front of the young artist. He would be struck down, with no hope for a better future. Keiko had grown to care for the boy, as she had come to care for all of her comrades. She couldn't bare the thought of standing by as one of her friends were murdered by another of her friends. The idea was just too painful to think about.

Keiko pondered over the situation as she roamed the halls, not really paying direct attention to where she was headed. She had finished her duties for the day and had sought out some time to think after witnessing one particularly bitter argument between Serizawa and Hijikata. She hadn't even noticed when her feet brought her to Hijikata's doorstep, nor had she really thought about what she was doing when she tentatively knocked on the frame of the door.

After she had done so, she immediately regretted it. ' _What am I doing here…_ ' she thought idly to herself, about to turn away from the door. However, right before she had the chance to leave, Hijikata slid open his door, a tired look on his face. Keiko bit her lip, suddenly very nervous about asking Hijikata anything. She hadn't even realized she wanted to talk to him about everything until she had already walked right up to his door. Hijikata sighed and opened the door slightly wider, gesturing for her to enter. She did so without hesitation, wandering into the middle of the room to sit down. Hijikata moved to his desk, settling himself in to continue writing his documents.

"What's on your mind?" he asked nonchalantly. Keiko bit her lip, glancing to the side as she tried to find the correct words to say. "Well… It's about Serizawa-san…" She murmured, and she saw Hijikata's body go rigid at the commander's name. He sighed, setting his delicate-looking writing brush down gently. He turned to face Keiko properly before he spoke.

"Ayama, as I _know_ you've already assumed by now, we plan to assassinate Serizawa." Hijikata spoke the words bluntly, his eyes burning with determination. Keiko nodded, waiting for him to continue. "Unfortunately, the bastard's actions reflect on not only himself, but the Shinsengumi as a whole. By extension, this reflects poorly on the Aizu domain, who support us. Kondo-san and I have received orders to eliminate Serizawa. I will tell you this, Ayama. _Very_ few people know about this.." His gaze was like a fire burning into her skin as he stared at her, and Keiko did not miss the implications of what he was telling her. Keiko steeled herself, banishing all thoughts of Ryunosuke from her mind for the moment, before nodding to Hijikata.

"What are your orders, sir." Keiko stated, although it wasn't a question. Hijikata looked satisfied with her reaction, and continued.

"I am afraid that what I am about to ask of you, well… It will be a much more difficult task

for you than the assassination would be." Keiko raised a brow at this. More difficult than killing someone? She didn't understand what he meant. Hijikata sighed, an apologetic look passing over his face as he spoke. "I need you to distract Nagakura." He said bluntly.

Keiko looked stunned. She blinked a few times in confusion, before her face twisted into a confused grimace. "I… I don't understand." She stated. "Why would I need to distract Nagakura? Won't he be helping you?" Hijikata still looked quite apologetic, and Keiko absently noticed that she really wasn't used to seeing this expression on him. He sighed again, louder this time, before he offered her an explanation.

"Nagakura is too close to Serizawa. It's not that I don't trust him… I do, I know that he would go through with it with us. I just- I don't know." Hijikata brought his hands up to his temples, gently pressing his fingertips to them in frustration. Keiko nodded, a soft smile on her face.

"You don't want him to have to choose." She clarified for him. Hijikata nodded slightly before looking away from her. "You really are very motherly you know." Keiko laughed when Hijikata's head snapped back towards her, a scowl upon his face. However, he said nothing in return to her jesting, so she continued. "Hijikata-san, if I may?" She asked gently, and he nodded, looking at her with weary eyes.

"Do you not think it unfair to take that choice away from him?" She asked. Hijikata stared at her for a moment, taking notice of how her soft voice starkly contrasted her cold stare. By all counts, Keiko looked like she was genuinely concerned and was just being pleasant. Her voice was soft and gentle, her brows pulled together in concern. But her eyes betrayed her. Her eyes were cold. She was testing him, forcing him to say the thing he truly did not want to have to speak aloud.

"It is unfair." He said, pausing for a moment to stare into her frozen eyes. "But I can't take the chance that he will choose wrong." He said it bluntly, trying to imitate the woman's chilled nature. He tried his best to mask how much the truth hurt him. He wanted to be able to trust his comrades unconditionally, he wanted to be able to tell Nagakura and everyone else everything and work together. But the reality was that he couldn't, if he were to lead the Shinsengumi to greatness, he would have to become a devil. And devil's did not rely on blind faith, so he could not afford such luxuries either.

Keiko leaned back slightly, eyeing him as she did so. She looked out the window, staring at the moon, as she spoke gently in response.

"I understand, Hijikata-san. I will deal with him."

The plan was set for September 16, and everyone had their respective roles to play. Everyone, except for Shinpachi and Heisuke.

Saito and Keiko were to keep them busy at Shimabara, along with Ryunosuke, after the others had left. Keiko had begged Kondo, Sannan and Hijikata to allow Ryunosuke to live, to just let him stay as a page. She would force the boy if she had to, but she couldn't bare the thought of him being struck down just for simply being there. It was too unjust. Ultimately, Kondo had conceded to Keiko's insistent pleading, admitting to her that he also did not wish to see the boy killed. However, both Sannan and Hijikata were quick to remind Keiko that, should the boy witness the assassination, they would have no choice.

Dusk had set on the 16th of September, and everyone met up at the entrance to Shimabara. Keiko did her best to laugh and joke with the rest of them, but in her heart she felt heavy. Deceiving Shinpachi was going to be tough, not because she wasn't able to do it, but because it would be the most dishonourable thing she had ever done in her life. She considered him not just a comrade, but something a bit more affectionate, that she couldn't quite place a word on yet… And she knew he trusted her. She felt _wrong_ doing this to him.

The night progressed smoothly, with everyone eating and drinking and having fun. Keiko sat next to Shinpachi, and despite herself she felt very nervous. She kept looking at him, seeing him smiling and laughing and having fun, currently having a drinking contest with Heisuke, and she felt nearly sick. She kept telling herself that she wasn't doing something wrong, that this needed to be done. It was better this way, that Shinpachi and Heisuke could just spend the night having fun. She told herself that she would do her best to keep them entertained and happy, and that was the only thing keeping the grimace threatening to break her perfect smile at bay. When Serizawa spoke up and offered Keiko a much-needed distraction, she sighed aloud in relief as she turned her head. She hoped that the two men to her left hadn't noticed her change in attitude.

"It's about time I headed back to our Headquarters." His voice was low, but everyone went silent as he spoke the words. Keiko stared at him, and she saw in his eyes that he knew _exactly_ what was happening. He knew that the others had planned an assassination, he knew that tonight he would most likely meet his end. Yet, he was calm, and moreover, he was going along with their plans. Keiko stared at him for a moment, and she could see the sickness upon his face and the tiredness in his eyes, and she gave him a knowing look of respect as she nodded in response to his words. She turned back to her cup of sake as others began to follow him in standing to leave.

Ryunosuke moved to stand as the others were leaving, but was stopped quickly by Serizawa. "You can stay." He said, his tone laced with finality. Keiko looked over her cup of sake at the young boy, a pleasant smile upon her lips. "You heard him, Ryu. Party isn't over yet." She joked and sent him a light-hearted wink. He seemed awestruck and confused, but agreed nonetheless. Keiko turned her head to Serizawa and the two stared at eachother for a moment in silent communication. She thanked him, from the bottom of her heart, and he seemed thankful as well. She thought then, that despite his aggressive tendencies, perhaps he did care about Ryunosuke.

Serizawa left then, followed closely by Hijikata, Sannan, and Okita. Keiko turned to the men at her side and smiled, forcing herself to shut down her doubts. She smiled, and it felt almost sinister to her when she did it, and raised her sake cup to cheers with Shinpachi. She downed the cup and looked over to Saito, who was calmly drinking his own sake next to Ryunosuke.

"Heeeyy~ Ayama-san, it's nice that you got to come out tonight too!" Heisuke suddenly spoke, turning to Keiko with a large grin on his face. Keiko smiled back pleasantly, nodding her agreeance. Shinpachi laughed out and offered her his own grin, and she had to steel herself so as not to lose her composure. "Yeah, you never get to go out and do fun stuff like this!" He nearly shouted in his excitement, and Keiko forced a calmness about herself as she turned away, closing her eyes as she brought her sake cup to her lips once more.

"Did it ever occur to either of you that I'm never invited out?" She asked, a sly smile playing on her face. Shinpachi's grin dropped instantly, a worried look crossing his face.

"Wait… you mean… You're allowed to go out?" He asked, and Heisuke's hand shot up to his mouth, desperately trying to conceal his mirth. Keiko puffed out her cheeks in annoyance. "Why wouldn't I be _allowed_ to go anywhere?" She shot back, and Shinpachi's worry only seemed to grow, as did Heisuke's amusement.

"You idiot!" Heisuke shouted, but was unable to elaborate as he had to stop himself from falling over in his fit of laughter. Shinpachi looked at him in horror, then at Ryunosuke as he heard him also chuckling. Even Saito and Kondo had looks of amusement on their faces. Shinpachi looked around desperately, he truly didn't realize that Keiko was allowed to leave the compound.

"I just- I thought-" He started and Keiko was swift to interrupt his attempt at an explanation.

"Because I am a _lady_ I cannot leave the safety of our home?" She accused, struggling to maintain her look of distaste. Truthfully, she also found Shinpachi's desperation and wrongful assumptions to be quite funny. However, she was taken aback when Shinpachi's worry was replaced with a warm smile and he took her hand gently. She froze, her eyes darting from his face to his hand, wrapped gently around hers, but she couldn't bring herself to move.

"I'm sorry." He said softly. Keiko urgently looked to Heisuke, only to find that he was now talking animatedly with Ryunosuke and Saito, and when she desperately looked to Kondo for help, he was engulfed in his meal and actively looking _away_ from her and Shinpachi. She turned her attention back to the man in front of her, trying to suppress the guilt and nerves growing in her stomach. The warm smile hadn't left his features as he spoke next. "I know you're strong but I can't help it." He was almost whispering, and it suddenly occurred to Keiko that he had moved slightly closer to her.

Everything in her body was screaming at her to pull away and to leave the room, leave the building, and run away. This was too intimate, too close. He inched closer again, and she snapped. She wrenched her hand away from his and leaned back slightly. She looked up at him to see him looking down and away from her, a pained look in his eyes, and she instantly regretted dismissing him.

"I think I'm going to head back." He said sadly. Keiko's eyes widened, the assassination filling her thoughts, and without thinking she had grabbed onto his wrist. "Wait!" She blurted, desperate to keep him away from the compound. Her mind racing, she suddenly stood up, forcing him up with her. "Let's, uhm, let's go outside for a minute." She said quietly, sending an urgent look towards Saito in hopes that he would be able to keep the other two busy in her absence. She hastily led Shinpachi out towards the balcony.

Once outside, she let go of his wrist and leaned against the railing, looking out at the bustling streets below them. She felt Shinpachi standing next to her, but she couldn't think of something to say yet. She opened her mouth, hoping the words would come, but she found herself to be tongue-tied.

"I guess I embarrassed you in there." Shinpachi suddenly murmured, leaning on the railing beside her. She looked over at him, and was taken aback by the look on his face. He looked defeated, like he had been in battle for days and was at the end of his strength. He chuckled, but the sad look in his eyes didn't leave, and Keiko felt her heart break at the sight. "I'm sorry I keep pushing myself on you. I've never really been good at dealing with rejection." The last word seemed to catch in his throat. Keiko suddenly felt an urge to hug him, to give in to what he wanted and let herself love again. She knew that she shouldn't, it wasn't a good idea. Yet, she found herself wanting to. After a moment of deliberation, she opened her mouth to speak.

"I'm… I'm not sure exactly how to say this." She started. "It's- It's very difficult for me to trust people." She looked up at him to see him staring at her expectantly. She continued. "I was in love once, when I was much younger, and I- I did something very special for him, something which should only be done for the right person. I mean, I thought he was, but he wasn't, and I obviously didn't know that at the time-" Shinpachi suddenly grabbed Keiko's hand, which she noticed was shaking.

"Calm down." He instructed gently. Keiko took a deep breath, trying desperately to soothe her anxiety. After a moment she began again. "I'm trying to say I trusted him, and he betrayed me in the worst way." She felt tears forming behind her eyes, but forced them back. "It- It hurt. It hurt a lot Shinpachi." She felt something within her snap, and she started crying. She felt herself being pulled into a hug, Shinpachi's warmth enveloping her, and she gave in to it and sobbed.

She had forgotten what it was like to trust in someone, to share your pain with someone, to be comforted by someone. So many years of isolation had turned Keiko into this broken woman who found herself afraid of love and afraid of trusting in her friends. Feeling Shinpachi's arms around her, his hand gently rubbing her back, soothing away her tears, she realized how much she really craved it. She drew back from him slightly to look up at his face, but to her shock the defeated look hadn't left his eyes.

"I won't push you anymore then." He said and he smiled, but it wasn't his usual smile and somehow that hurt Keiko to see. His arms left her sides, the cold night air replacing Shinpachi's warmth. He turned to leave and Keiko found herself moving with thinking. She stood in front of him and looked up to see him staring down at her in surprise. She hesitated only for a moment.

A blush forcing itself across her face, she leaned up and gently pressed her lips to his.

She felt him go rigid as she kissed him, but he was quick to recover and wrap his arms protectively around her waist. He deepened the kiss, and she found herself feeling satisfied. She took hold of his vest, her fingers curling tightly around the fabric. She noticed that his lips were soft, and she could taste the bitterness of the sake he had been drinking. The two pulled away, catching their breath.

Shinpachi stared down at her, a look of bewilderment on his face. Keiko kept her grip on his vest, lowering her head to his chest so that she could hide her face.

"Please. Don't stop pushing me. I need it." She whispered, and he hugged her closer, his chin resting on her head. "I won't then." He responded, and she sighed in relief.

Suddenly they heard something crash inside the room, and heard Heisuke shout; "What exactly is going on?!" Keiko's head snapped up, her thoughts filling with the night's events. She had completely forgotten about the assassination, her thoughts and emotions had been consumed by Shinpachi. She mentally chastised herself for her lack of control, and before she could do anything to stop him, Shinpachi had rushed to grab her hand and pull her back into the room.

Heisuke was standing, his fists clenched, facing a formidable looking Saito. Keiko felt panic rise in her gut as Shinpachi spoke. "What is going on here?" He demanded. Heisuke turned his attention to his friend. "He won't let us leave." He said simply. Shinpachi looked at Saito, who was staring down the other two men with a glare nearly as frozen as her own, then looked at Kondo, who was sitting down, a solemn look on his face. She saw the realization dawn on Shinpachi's face.

"Does this mean… something is about to go down?" He asked, staring at Saito. He still hadn't released Keiko's hand from his grip, and she felt all of the night's guilt return full force as she stared at their intertwined fingers. She felt his grip tighten. "Are you going to… Kill Serizawa-san?!" He demanded. Keiko flinched at the words, vaguely hearing Ryunosuke say a shocked "What?".

Shinpachi turned to Keiko, eyeing the look on her face. She found herself unable to face him, until he suddenly pulled his hand away from hers. Her eyes shot to his and all she saw was betrayal. He turned away from her abruptly to look at Kondo. "Kondo-san, what the hell is this about?" He asked, his eyes wide. Kondo did not respond, only looking up at Shinpachi with sad eyes. "Were you ordered to do this?!" He pressed.

"If such were the case, what would you do?" Saito asked, his voice chilled.

"Does everyone else know about this?" Shinpachi retorted defiantly.

"No. Only a select few know." Saito answered. "The commander decided that it would be best if you did not bear witness." He said the words, and they were as insulting as Keiko had imagined they would be, with indifference. She winced as Shinpachi took a step forward, his frustration surging.

"What the hell! Don't give me that!" He shouted, and Keiko could see in his eyes that he was hurt, "So you couldn't tell me?!" He demanded, his fists clenched so hard his knuckles had gone white. Heisuke stepped in front of him, his hands out haphazardly. "Hey, wait a sec Shinpatsu-" Keiko cut him off when she suddenly noticed the blue-haired boy had turned to run.

"Ryu! Wait!" She shouted, bolting after him. Heisuke followed quickly after her, accompanied by Shinpachi.

Keiko and Heisuke caught up to Ryunosuke fairly quickly, both of them being far more fit than he was. Heisuke grabbed onto Ryunosuke's wrist. "Ryunosuke, you can't go back!" He pleaded.

"Why the hell do you have to kill that man?!" Ryunosuke demanded. Keiko took a step forward, her hand outstretched. "Serizawa-san is-"

"Stop Shinpachi!" The three turned as they heard Saito's desperate voice call out. Shinpachi was running towards them followed closely by Saito. "You are the one man I cannot allow to return to headquarters." Saito accused, and Keiko knew the insult would hit Shinpachi hard. Shinpachi turned on his heel, facing Saito head on. "Is it because I'm from the same school as Serizawa-san?" He demanded. "So you couldn't trust me?!" Keiko instantly stepped towards the brunette.

"It's not that Shinpa-"

"NO!" He shouted, his voice echoing through the streets. "I don't want to hear anything from you." His words were accusatory, and Keiko's heart broke. He didn't even turn to look at her.

"It's not that." Saito was as calm and collected as ever. "In order to continue fighting along your side as brothers-in-arms, it is imperative that I make sure you survive."

"Shut up!" Shinpachi shouted, his rage boiling over. He drew his sword, taking his battle stance to face Saito. Saito looked down, reaching to draw his own sword. "You leave me no choice." He said coldly.

Heisuke stood in front of Ryunosuke, shouting for his two comrades to quit fighting. From the corner of her eye, Keiko saw Ryunosuke turn on his heel to start running down an alleyway. She gasped, shouting out his name in desperation. Heisuke turned as well, and Keiko could see that he was overwhelmed.

"Heisuke, Ayama-san. If you do not want to let him die, stop him." Saito's words wrung through Keiko's head. With one final apologetic glance to Shinpachi, Keiko and Heisuke raced after Ryunosuke.


	9. Chapter 7

Keiko and Heisuke sped through the streets of Kyoto. They had lost sight of Ryunosuke after he had run away, so now their only option was to beat him to the gates and cut him off.

It did not take them very long to get there, as both of them were very swift on their feet. Waiting for them at the gates was Harada. Upon seeing the two of them rushing towards the gates, a look of utter confusion crossed his face.

"Ayama-san? Heisuke? What are you two doing here?" He asked with a panicked undertone to his voice. Keiko hurriedly looked around for any sign of their blue-haired friend.

"Sano-san, has Ryunosuke come by here?" Heisuke asked urgently. Harada shook his head in response. "No, I haven't seen him."

Keiko continued scanning the area for any signs of Ryunosuke. She had a feeling that if they had beat him here, he wasn't far behind. From the corner of her eye she caught a flash of long, dark blue hair, and her head snapped up just in time to see Ryunosuke climbing over the wall a few metres away from them.

"Ryunosuke!" She yelled out, rushing past Harada and into the compound. Heisuke followed closely behind her. A sudden thought exploded into her head, bringing her to an abrupt stop. She hadn't been able to stop him, there was no doubt he would see the act. Her eyes widened and she turned to Heisuke, grabbing his shoulders in desperation. "Heisuke, you need to go after Ryu. I have to go get something, so you have to go. Quickly!" She gave him a light shove in the direction of Serizawa's room, and he wasted no time in running after his friend.

Keiko turned on her heel and sped towards her own room. She needed her glaive, if she were going to save Ryunosuke. She couldn't skirt around the fact that there would be an order for Ryunosuke's death, and that if she wanted to save him, she would have to fight at least one of her comrades.

Skidding to a stop in front of her room, she ran in and snatched her glaive from its stand. She turned and bolted back towards Serizawa's room, not bothering to close her door as she left. She sped through the compound, and as she neared her destination she could hear the commotion. She heard Ryunosuke screaming, then she could hear Serizawa's loud, aggressive laughter. To her horror, it sounded distorted. Memories of Niimi rushed through Keiko's mind and she forced herself to go faster.

She arrived to see Serizawa grab Ryunosuke by the throat and lift him into the air. Her eyes widened in terror. "The idea of a wretch like you saving my life…" Serizawa spat out to the blue-haired boy, his distorted voice full of distaste. "Makes me sick with disgust!"

Keiko wasted no more time as she rushed towards the overbearing man, brandishing her glaive. She swung the weapon around her body before thrusting it forwards towards Serizawa's throat, a bitter hatred present in her eyes. Serizawa instantly threw Ryunosuke and caught her attack with his sword, pushing her back slightly. Keiko grunted and she dug her heel into the ground for support. She turned her eyes to Ryunosuke, an urgent look upon her face.

"Ryu! You have to run!" She ordered, but she was only met with a scared expression on his face. Keiko dipped under Serizawa's sword and swung her glaive again, knocking him back, if only a little bit. She ran to where Ryunosuke had landed, crouching down beside him. "Ryu. You aren't safe here." She whispered, grabbing his arm as she spoke. "You need to run if you want to live." Ryunosuke's eyes widened at her statement, and he glanced over her shoulder at Serizawa. Keiko turned her head as well, narrowing her eyes at the man. They watched as Harada tried to attack him but was easily dismissed, followed by Okita who was violently thrown off to the side. Ryunosuke stood suddenly, tears in his eyes.

"Why..?" He whispered, and Keiko looked up at him with apologetic eyes. "Why did it have to come to this? I don't understand any of you at all!" Keiko stood, reaching out to place a hand on his shoulder. From behind her she heard Serizawa sigh, and she turned her head.

"Live, cur." He said softly. Keiko's eyes widened in confusion before he continued. "If you fight with all your might to live, even you… Will come to understand us one day." He spoke the words with finality and with a smile on his face. Keiko stared at the man before her, her fist tightening around her glaive, but she stayed where she was. She turned back to Ryunosuke, a determined look in her eyes.

"He's right." She whispered. "If you fight for it… But you _must_ run." She was very nearly pleading at this point. Ryunosuke looked at her with sadness in his amber orbs, but nodded his agreeance nonetheless. He backed up slowly at first, then turned to run out of the complex. Keiko watched him go, then turned back to Serizawa.

He was facing Hijikata.

"What's keeping you Hijikata?" Serizawa asked, his voice laced with mirth. "Is this the best you've got? Weren't you going to surpass me?!" Serizawa lunged as he spoke, his movements large and intimidating. Keiko eyed Hijikata, prepared to lunge forward and end the violent man's life herself. But, the look in Hijikata's eyes stopped her.

She could see every ounce of determination, and all the fire that was raging in his violet eyes. This was the battle that Hijikata had been waiting for. In this moment, she did not belong in their fight. It was a battle between Hijikata and Serizawa, and those two alone.

Serizawa brought his sword down with a powerful blow, but Hijikata caught it with his own. After taking the Ochimizu, Serizawa not only seemed to have grown in strength but also in stature, as he towered over Hijikata. Still, Hijikata held his own against the monstrous man. A grotesque grin spread across Serizawa's face as he looked down at Hijikata. "You have a long way to go before you become a true demon." He said in a mocking tone. Hijikata grit his teeth.

"Shut up!" He spit, his eyes narrowed with hatred. "It isn't a matter of whether I can or not. I _will_ become one. I've made up my mind!" He shouted as he pushed Serizawa back. He assaulted the larger man with blow after blow, not relenting for a second. Serizawa caught one particularly powerful blow with his own sword and the two stood pushing against each other.

Keiko saw Sannan and Okita nod to each other from the corner of her eye, and she noticed the two of them rush towards Serizawa. Serizawa's malicious grin only spread wider as they did so. Sannan struck first, but Serizawa deflected his attack quickly using his iron fan. Okita followed quickly, thrusting out his sword at Serizawa's throat. The larger man raised his arm to shield his neck from the attack, and grunted as Okita's sword was driven deep into his forearm.

Hijikata took his chance immediately. He lunged forward, driving his sword deep into Serizawa's heart.

Keiko sighed in relief, her grip loosening from her glaive significantly. She watched as Serizawa whispered something to Hijikata, and saw Hijikata's eyes widen in confusion. She idly wondered what the man might have said to him.

Hijikata withdrew his sword from the larger man's chest, whipping it in the air to rid it of blood. He sheathed his sword elegantly. Everyone but Keiko had run up to him for orders.

"We have to search for Ibuki-kun, don't we?" Sannan said, his voice soft and velvety. Hijikata nodded curtly. Keiko saw a villainous smile creep across Okita's face, and she grimaced as he spoke.

"That mean's 'go kill him' doesn't it?" He said nonchalantly. Keiko nearly growled, her eyes narrowing. She saw murderous intent in Okita's eyes, and she knew that if he found Ryunosuke then surely the boy would not survive. She supposed her work wasn't finished yet.

As everyone rushed out of the compound, speeding through the streets, she leapt across the rooftops. She could hear Heisuke and Harada shouting for Ryunosuke, desperate to find him in Okita's place. Her eyes scanned the streets as she leapt across the rooftops, searching for any sign of the blue-haired boy.

Suddenly, she heard laughter. Okita's laughter.

She dropped down from the roof she was on and sped towards the sound. She bolted around a corner and spotted Okita and Ryunosuke in front of the bridge leading out of town.

"Of all of us, I had to be the one to find you." Okita said with a malicious smile on his face as he slowly walked towards Ryunosuke. Keiko saw the panic dawn on Ryunosuke's face as he turned to run, but slipped and fell. Okita was in front of him them, murmuring something that Keiko couldn't make out from where she was. She rushed forward, but she wasn't close enough.

Keiko filled with pride when she saw Ryunosuke grab a fistful of dirt and chuck it at Okita's face. Okita lifted his hand to shield his eyes, and in that moment Ryunosuke sped past him and up the bridge. Keiko saw an amused grin on Okita's face right before he turned and whipped a tiny throwing dagger into Ryunosuke's calf. Keiko pushed herself one last time, and finally she was close enough.

She leapt in front of Okita, using the momentum of her body to swing the glaive around her torso. She steadied herself, bracing her legs, as she slammed the pole end of her weapon into Okita's gut, sending him flying to the bottom of the bridge. She saw the shock on his face as he was thrown, and she looked down at him with distaste.

"Your bloodlust is worse than those damned furies." She accused, sending the man one of her frozen glares. He glared back up at her, clutching his stomach as he tried to push himself back up. Keiko paid him no mind as she turned to the injured boy behind her.

She rushed to his side, dropping her glaive beside her as she examined his wound. He looked up at her, his amber eyes filled with terror, and she pulled him into a hug.

"It's okay Ryu. I'm not going to hurt you." She said gently as she released him. He nodded, wincing when he tried to move his leg. She stared at it, sighing as she closed her eyes. "Please don't be alarmed. I'm going to heal this." She said as she looked back up at him. His eyes widened in terror as he looked past her, and she turned just in time to see Okita bringing his sword down towards her head.

Keiko gasped, quickly bringing her hands up to catch the blade with her palms. She grit her teeth as she felt the blade cut her flesh, then glared up at her attacker. She swiftly kicked his legs out from under him, but did not release his sword.

Okita fell, hard, and as he did Keiko was quick to rise to her feet. She held onto his sword and, as she expected, it slipped from his grasp as he fell. Keiko tossed it to the side before leaning down in front of Okita.

"I won't let you kill him. It will be up to him if he lives or dies." She stated with finality, and her eyes averted towards the river beneath them. Okita looked at it, then back at Keiko, his eyes widening with realisation. He smirked. "You aren't as kind as you seem." He stated, and she snorted. "I'm far kinder than you. Now stay down." She commanded, rising to go back to Ryunosuke.

She looked down at the boy and her gut filled with pity. But, she would do her best to help him.

"Give me your leg." She instructed. Ryunosuke did so without hesitation. "This may hurt a bit." She said quietly, before pulling the small dagger out of his leg in one swift motion. Ryunosuke grit his teeth, wincing at the pain. He looked up at Keiko, and his breath caught in his lunges at what he saw.

Keiko's eyes, normally a beautiful shade of icy-blue, were _glowing_. He saw her open her mouth to speak, but was too distracted to listen to her words, and he saw that her teeth had sharpened into small fangs. A light-blue glow had emitted from around her, almost like a living smoke was circling around her form, focusing on her hands. He saw the cuts on her palms slowly being mended, returning her hands to their perfect smoothness. Yet, none of this scared him. He felt calm, and above all, he trusted Keiko. And when he saw the blue-smoke encircling his leg, he didn't feel any fear. Not even when he felt a slight burn on the wound, and the smoke surged and glowed even brighter, did he feel an ounce of panic.

When the glowing smoke finally lifted from his leg and evaporated into the air around them, Ryunosuke looked down at his leg to find the wound completely healed. Not even a scar was left.

Keiko turned her head away as her eyes lost their other-worldly glow. Ryunosuke stared at her in disbelief for a moment, before he smiled at her.

"Thank you, Ayama-san." He whispered. She looked at him, but she couldn't bring herself to smile back. They both rose from the ground, and from the corner of her eye she saw Okita pulling himself up as well.

"Well, Ayama-san? Are you going to do it or shall I?" Okita grunted, leaning on the railing of the bridge for support. Keiko stared at him for a moment, then sighed as she turned back to Ryunosuke, who was looking at her with wide, confused eyes of amber.

"Ryu. We can't let you leave." She started. Ryunosuke took a step back, so she hastily continued. "As members of the Shinsengumi, we must carry out the orders given to us. You know what those orders are." She walked past him, blocking his path. She smiled gently as she looked at him. "Do you remember what Serizawa said to you? Fight with all your might to live." He looked even more confused now, and a sudden look of fear washed over him as he heard Okita drawing his second sword behind him. Keiko continued. "You have the choice now Ryu. There is only one way for you to go, and it isn't the easy way out. You must fight for yourself, or you will die. It is your choice." She stared at him, her eyes narrowed.

Ryunosuke stared at her, then looked around. He was trapped between two terrifying monsters, both legendary warriors, and he didn't understand what she meant. He could hear his heart beating rapidly in his chest, his panic quickly returning, as he realised that soon he would be lying dead at the bottom of the river.

 _The river._

Ryunosuke looked frantically down at the river below. It was overflowing from the recent rain, and it seemed the current had picked up from the storm. Still, Ryunosuke knew he was a fair swimmer. He stood more of a chance with the river than he did against Okita's sword. He looked up at Keiko and nodded to her.

Okita rushed at him then, his sword swinging to make contact with Ryunosuke's chest. This time, Keiko did nothing.

Ryunosuke grunted as he swiftly ducked to avoid the hit, shock washing over him as he saw the sword cut through some of his blue locks. He bolted then, rushing across the bridge and over the railing. He plunged into the water, and he was gone from sight.

Keiko stared into the water after him and smiled. She looked over at Okita, who had a sly grin on his face as he watched her.

"You really aren't human, are you?" He uttered. Keiko shook her head and rolled her eyes, turning to walk past him. She quickly scooped her glaive from the ground as she headed back to the compound, Okita quick on her heels. She could sense Ryunosuke's heartbeat, beating fast and strong with adrenaline, and was pleased to know that he hadn't died just yet. She was confident that he would survive now. She smiled contentedly to herself as a thought crossed her mind.

 _Perhaps I will see him again one day._

Several days later, Ryunosuke walked through the streets of Kyoto, heading out of the bustling city. He had gotten some less conspicuous clothing and cut his hair short, and now he intended to leave the town behind him and finally begin his life anew. As he walked along, he thought of his time with his friends in the Shinsengumi. He would miss Heisuke and the guys, but he was especially sad to be leaving _that_ woman behind.

Keiko. She had acted like an older sister to him, right from the start. She had saved his life, and then given him the chance to save it himself. He didn't care that she wasn't human, or that she acted strangely. She was kind, and he owed her his life. He would never forget what she did for him or how she had been there for him during his time living amongst the wolves of Mibu. He only hoped that he would have the chance to thank her one day.

As he pondered over this, he turned to face the city one final time. He stared down the street, his eyes hastily scanning the croud. He found himself searching for that familiar shade of light blue and quickly shook his head, closing his eyes as he turned to start walking again. Upon opening his eyes, he nearly bumped into a short brown-haired boy wearing a loose salmon coloured shirt. He grunted in surprise and the boy let out a startled noise as well, before bowing profusely.

"I'm terribly sorry, sir. I should have been watching where I was going." He said mid bow. Ryunosuke noticed that the boys voice sounded surprisingly high-pitched and he was acting a little bit too formal, but he shrugged it off.

"Don't worry about it, it was my fault anyway." He said, giving the boy his own small bow in apology. The boy smiled, expressing his gratitude and wishing Ryunosuke a good day before he headed off into town. Ryunosuke stared after the very feminine boy for only a moment before he turned back to his path ahead, his head held high as he finally left the blood stained streets of Kyoto.

 **A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! So Reimeiroku is finished, and Chizuru has finally arrived, so we will** ** _finally_** **be moving on with the story! :D I think it's pretty obvious based on my pairings, but from** **here on out I'll be following Heisuke's route in the game, mostly. :)**

 **Thank you** ** _so much_** **to everyone who took the time to review! I appreciate it so much and it really motivated me to keep writing. This is shaping up to be a really long story, and sometimes when life gets in the way or when you lose your inspirations, it gets difficult to actually get the words going. Everyone's reviews really help me to find my motivation, so thank you all very much. :)**


	10. Chapter 8

The last few days had been entirely hellish for Keiko.

Okita had kept a very close eye on Keiko after she had revealed some of her true self in front of him. He was extremely distrustful of her, she could tell, yet he had yet to mention what he saw to Hijikata or to Kondo. Keiko suspected that he was keeping the information to himself in order to blackmail her in the future. In any case, he had made it very clear to her that he was suspicious of her, more so than ever now.

On top of that, Shinpachi had outright _refused_ to even look at her after the night's events.

While it was painfully obvious that he was upset with everyone, save for Heisuke, Shinpachi was especially cold towards Keiko. After her own self admittance of her feelings, after finally pushing through her fear and doubt, after _finally_ opening herself up to the opportunity to love.

And now he hated her.

Keiko sighed in a dramatic manner as she sat on the porch, leaning back on her palms with her eyes closed and head back. It was beginning to get colder out, but that didn't bother Keiko. She had always been exceptionally tolerant of colder weather, perhaps due to the fact that she had lived for years atop a mountain. It was much colder up there, even during the summer months.

Keiko opened her eyes and stared up at the sky. Light grey clouds were starting to gently roll over the sky, blocking out the warmth of the sun. Keiko idly thought that perhaps it would finally snow tonight.

"Oi! Ayama-san!" Heisuke called out to her, and Keiko lazily turned her head to her left to see Heisuke casually walking over towards her. She had a tired look on her face, and Heisuke smirked as he sat down next to her. "You look so gloomy. Guys don't like that you know." He stated with a grin on his face. Keiko rolled her eyes but couldn't help but to warmly smile back at him.

"What do you want Heisuke." Keiko stated, pushing herself to sit up straighter beside him. He folded his arms across his chest before letting out a sigh. He turned to look at her with a hard stare.

"It's about Shinpatsu-san." He said bluntly. Keiko looked over at Heisuke, meeting his gaze for a moment. However, she couldn't hold it. She was wracked with guilt over the events of that night. She looked down at the ground, waiting for Heisuke to continue.

"Ayama-san, he won't even tell _me_ about it. I know something happened, because if I even mention your name he freaks out!" Heisuke reached out and placed a hand on Keiko's shoulder. "So tell me what happened. Maybe I can help."

Keiko looked up at him to see a light smile on his face, a trusting smile. She shook her head, looking away again. "Heisuke… It's, uhm, complicated." She started, and she felt his hand fall from her shoulder as she spoke. Keiko paused for a moment, trying to find the words to describe what happened. "We had a very intense discussion when we went outside. A very _personal_ discussion." Keiko added the second part in, emphasizing that their confessions were personal matters, stopping Heisuke in his attempt to push for more details. Keiko sighed as she finally addressed what she thought was wrong.

"I think that Shinpachi-san thinks I was lying." She stated, staring back up at the clouds. Heisuke tilted his head to the side.

"Lying?" He repeated, more confused than before. Keiko nodded.

"As I said, we discussed some very personal matters. I suspect that he thinks I was lying about everything I said to him in order to distract him from going home." Keiko clarified for him, and Heisuke nodded, his brows furrowing together.

"Okay… Well, were you lying?" He asked, looking up at her. Keiko started at this, her head snapping over to stare into Heisuke's clear blue eyes.

"Of course not!" Keiko blurted, a heavy feeling settling into her chest. "In fact… I had actually forgotten all about my orders while we were talking. It is true, at first I was trying to think of a way to distract him. But once we started talking about-" Keiko cut her sentence short when she realized what she was saying. She didn't know why, but she didn't want to divulge to Heisuke what had gone on between her and Shinpachi that night. She felt a bit embarrassed by her actions and disclosing what had happened with Heisuke… Well, she thought that he may not entirely understand. Or perhaps she was still afraid of opening up to people.

She swallowed a lump in her throat before attempting to continue.

"Once we got into talking, I completely forgot about my orders. Nothing I said was a lie, nor was I exaggerating to keep him occupied. I was completely honest at that time." Heisuke nodded, his right arm folded across his chest while his left was resting on top, his left index finger lightly tapping his chin in thought. He stared up at the darkening sky, deep in thought.

"Do you regret it?" He asked, still tapping his chin as he gazed up at the sky. Keiko's eyes lowered.

"More than anything." She murmured. "I've never felt like this before, where I've so badly wanted to take back my own actions. By not telling him, I betrayed him. I feel… ashamed." Keiko couldn't bare to look at him after that. She really did feel shameful, a feeling which was completely new to her. She wanted more than anything to take everything back, mission be damned.

"Well." Heisuke stood up abruptly, startling Keiko out of her thoughts. He stomped in front of her in an exaggerated manner, before pointing at her dramatically. She started at the sudden movement.

"Ayama-san. You were given orders to distract myself and Shinpatsu-san on that night. In other words, you were ordered, by the demon himself, to directly betray our trust! Is that correct?" He asked, a little too loudly. Keiko looked around in a hurry, searching to make sure they were completely alone. Once she was sure no one was eavesdropping, she looked up at him sheepishly and nodded. Heisuke smiled. "Then is it not also true that you may have been kicked out, or even possibly made to commit seppuku, had you denied that request? That if you were to abide by your friends, you would be betraying your commander?" Heisuke's grin had grown impossibly wide by now, and Keiko could not understand how he was possibly so… pure. She nodded slowly in response to his assumptions.

"See then? By betraying us you were doing right by us!" Keiko tilted her head in confusion, raising a brow at the joyful boy before her. "If you were to disobey Hijikata-san or Kondo-san, you would be cast out, one way or another. So then we wouldn't be able to see you anymore, and the Shinsengumi would have lost one _hell_ of a warrior!" Keiko's eyes widened. She had never thought of it that way before. She clasped her hands together and placed them on her legs, her grip tightening so much her knuckles went white.

She looked back up at Heisuke with a slight smile that reached her eyes. "Thank you, Heisuke." She said quietly as she stared into his teal orbs. Heisuke nodded, placing his hands on his hips.

"If you're feeling up to it, you want to spar for a bit?" He asked gently, and Keiko nodded eagerly. She needed to blow off a bit of steam. Heisuke laughed at her energetic reply. "Okay, and if you want to, afterwards we can go out and grab a drink!" He enthused, reaching a hand out to help her up off the porch. Keiko took his hand gladly.

"Sure thing. Feeling bad now that you've realized that you guys never bothered to invite me out anywhere?" She teased lightly, a sly smile playing on her lips. Heisuke chuckled as he pulled her up.

"Heh, you caught me." He grinned, reaching up to scratch his cheek as he looked away in lighthearted guilt. The two of them began to casually walk towards the training grounds. They walked in a comfortable silence, Heisuke leading and Keiko following behind.

Keiko was truly glad for Heisuke's friendship. She had been wracked with guilt for the last few days, and even if only slightly, Heisuke had lifted some of that from her shoulders just by being there for her. He was doing everything he could think of to cheer her up. And she was certain that he was doing the same for Shinpachi.

As she stared at Heisuke's back, his long ponytail swishing from side to side, Keiko smiled. _He's really a wonderful boy._ She thought, just as the pair had reached the training grounds.

Keiko headed to the rack which held all of the training weapons, reaching for one of the heavier mock spears. She held the weapon at arms reach, balancing it out in her palm to test it's weight. She spun it in front of her a few times, then nodded to herself, pleased with it's performance. She turned to Heisuke then who was idly swinging his bokken as he waited for her.

"You ready?" He asked casually, his feet planted firmly as he pointed his wooden sword at Keiko. She smirked in response.

"Are _you_?" Keiko didn't give Heisuke time to answer, as she had lunged forward and swung her spear down at him in a powerful strike. Heisuke countered her attack flawlessly, sliding his own sword down her weapon to strike at her torso. Keiko lifted her spear away and spun around, gracefully avoiding Heisuke's counter-attack. When she turned back to face him, he was beaming.

The two of them continued darting and dancing around each other, throwing equally powerful strikes towards the other. As they fought, both of them were laughing heartily. They had both needed to unwind, to let go of all the built up stress and anxiety from the last few days. As a result, neither one of them had taken this fight seriously. They were both having fun, simply enjoying each other's company rather than actually trying to improve their swordsmanship skills.

After some time of simply laughing and striking, Keiko began _actually_ dancing as she fought with Heisuke, resulting in him laughing even harder. Keiko smiled as she twirled on her tip-toes, her right hand holding her spear out in front of her while her left arm was above her head. Heisuke was laughing so hard he had to lean on his bokken to keep himself upright. Keiko twirled her way towards him and haphazardly thrust her spear out towards his shoulder, which Heisuke only narrowly dodged.

"I wonder if I could beat you while dancing." Keiko snickered at the thought, smirking mischievously as she pranced over to strike at Heisuke again. He stumbled backwards, again only barely evading Keiko's careless attack. He could barely keep himself upright from laughing so hard, how was he going to actually fight her while she was behaving like _that_?! Heisuke dove to the right to avoid another of Keiko's prancing strikes, getting to his feet again and immediately lunging forward to attack Keiko. It was a desperate attempt at regaining his composure, and as Keiko twirled away to avoid his strike, what little control he had mustered was instantly gone.

As Keiko danced away from the laughing boy, avoiding his lazy attempt at an attack, she caught sight of something from the corner of her eye. She turned her head to the side, only to see Shinpachi leaning against a post, his arms folded across his chest, watching the scene with a lonely frown on his usually cheerful face.

Keiko's heart dropped to her stomach when she saw him, and she was halted in her tracks immediately, her feet rooting to the spot. She stared at him, and she felt an overpowering urge to run over to him. She wanted more than anything to apologize, to explain herself, to tell him that she wasn't lying.

More than anything, she wanted him to talk to her again.

Just as Keiko had found it in herself to take the first step, she felt something catch in between her feet. She gasped as she was tripped over, and she fell face first onto the ground, with a very ungraceful "oof!".

Keiko groaned as she turned over, looking up to see Heisuke beaming down at her.

"I did it! I really did it! I _finally_ beat you!" He exclaimed, barely able to contain his excitement. Keiko rolled her eyes, a grimace forming on her face. "I was distracted." She murmured, turning her head back to the post. However, Shinpachi was already gone.

" _Gods_ woman! Where is all the booze going?!" Heisuke shouted as Keiko finished off her fifth bottle of sake. She simply shrugged as the geisha brought her a sixth bottle. Heisuke gaped as Keiko calmly poured herself some of the sake into her cup, her behaviour having stayed entirely the same for the duration of their night out. Heisuke suddenly huffed as he poured some more sake into his own cup, and he quickly downed it in an effort to keep up with his female companion. "By the way… I hope you don't think _I'M_ paying for all that?!" He gestured to Keiko's growing collection of empty bottles, a bitter expression on his face. Keiko giggled as she took note of the expression on Heisuke's face. If she wasn't mistake, she could swear that he seemed _jealous_ of her alcohol tolerance.

"I'm not like you and the other two idiots." She grinned with mirth as she spoke, leaning over to jab Heisuke in the ribs with her index finger. "Unlike _some people_ , I am good with my money. I have enough saved for quite a lot more than a few bottles of cheap sake." Heisuke grunted as he took a large gulp, his face starting to really redden from the alcohol. He turned to her then, his eyes narrowed.

"Ayama- _san_." He said, emphasizing the honourific as he leaned closer to her. Keiko raised a brow as she leaned back slightly. "I wanna knooow~..." Heisuke trailed off as he spoke, hiccuping a bit. He had to rest his hand on the floor to stabilize himself. His eyes had long since glazed over in his drunken state. "What is going on with you and Shinpatsan? He's _so_ upset." Keiko sighed, setting down her empty cup.

"I think you're at your limit, Heisuke. Let's go home no-"

"NO!" Heisuke suddenly bolted upright and darted away from Keiko. She shot her head up and looked at him in shock, her icy-blue eyes widened. "Tell me what's wrong!" Keiko huffed, standing up and walking towards him briskly. She grabbed his arm and was about to pull him out of the building forcibly, when he suddenly rag-dolled onto the floor. Keiko grunted as she now held him up by his arm, the rest of him hanging limp by her side.

"Heisuke!" She uttered sternly as she dropped him, rather ungently, to the floor. "What on earth is the matter with you?!" She demanded. However, he did not respond. Keiko sighed in annoyance as she leaned down beside him, reaching out to try and carry him home. She paused when she heard a strange, strangled sound come from the drunk boy in front of her. She leaned in closer.

She heard the muffled sound of a boy sniffling.

Keiko stared down at her friend in confusion, slowly lifting him up to see his face. Heisuke had tears in his eyes and was sniffling as he bit his lip in an effort to keep himself from crying. Keiko gently helped him sit up and sat beside him, her hand on his shoulder in reassurance.

"Heisuke. What's the matter?" She asked with forced gentleness as she tried her hardest to suppress her irritation with the boy. Heisuke turned and looked at her desperately. "Two of my best friends are fighting and I don't know what to do! I don't know what's wrong!" He nearly shouted in his exasperation, his tears threatening to fall down his face at any second. He furiously rubbed at his eyes, willing himself to just _not cry._

Keiko was taken aback by his outburst. She could see that Heisuke had had far too much to drink, and she was surprised to see that he cared _this_ much that her and Shinpachi were at odds with each other. More shocking to her was that Heisuke had referred to her as one of his _best_ friends… Keiko could feel her heart swell at the thought, all of her previous annoyance fading quickly.

She looked at Heisuke, who had his knees pulled up tight against his chest and was hugging them, pouting. She shook his shoulder gently and he looked over at her.

"If you come home quietly, I'll tell you what's wrong. Is that fair?" She looked at him with tenderness in her cold blue eyes, and Heisuke nodded slowly in agreeance. Keiko smiled sweetly as she rose to her feet, reaching out to help Heisuke up. She pulled him up from his seat on the floor, and held onto him for a moment to help him steady himself. When she felt he was steady, she turned to leave the room, Heisuke following her obediently.

Keiko paid the establishment what was due for both of them and led Heisuke out and away from Shimabara. They walked back to the Shinsengumi headquarters in relative silence, though the trek was slow due to Heisuke's unsteadiness. Some time during their journey home, light snowflakes began to gently drift down from the sky, and ss they gradually made their way home, Keiko could see Heisuke beginning to sober up a bit. She raised her face to the snow speckled sky, mentally thanking the Gods for giving her friend a bit of a clearer mind.

They reached the large gate of the mansion and headed inside. Keiko walked over to the stairs leading up to the main hall and sat on the bottom step, waiting for Heisuke to follow her. He seemed exhausted, his eyelids half shut already, but he followed her over to the stairs nonetheless.

"You still want me to tell you?" Keiko asked, leaning over to him slightly. Heisuke nodded, staring blankly at the ground with a sullen expression on his face. Keiko took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, leaning back onto her palms as she exhaled.

"That night… We talked about, erhm, _feelings_." Keiko grimaced as she said the words, looking over to Heisuke with a slightly guilty look. He raised a brow at her, but did not comment. Keiko glanced off to the side before she continued. "And… and I kissed him."

Heisuke jolted upright and pointed at Keiko accusingly. "I knew it!" He shouted, and Keiko's grimace only grew. "I knew it! I could tell something big like that happened! About damn time too, you two have been flirting for _ages_!" Heisuke bellowed, his signature grin back on his face. Keiko huffed in annoyance.

"Did you so easily forget that he won't talk to me right now? Why are you so delighted." Keiko straightened herself up, resting her left elbow on her knee to lean her cheek upon her knuckles as she glared at him. Heisuke laughed out loud, folding his arms over his chest.

"So Shinpatsu-san thinks that you were lying about your feelings, and that you only kissed him as a distraction. No wonder he won't talk about it." Heisuke mused, his eyes staring up at the night sky in thought. He looked over to Keiko and beamed at her. "I'll knock some sense into him!"

Heisuke got up abruptly then, turning and rushing to scurry to the top of the stairs. Keiko jolted up, turning around as her eyes widened in surprise. "What, now?! You can't go now!" She started to hastily climb the stairs after a laughing Heisuke, when the two of them heard footsteps approaching from the gate. The pair turned around to see Hijikata, Saito and Okita filing into the compound, the snow gently falling around their forms as they walked. But something was off.

The body Okita was holding in his arms.

Keiko narrowed her eyes in confusion. She could tell that the person - who looked to be a young boy, dressed in light grey pants and a dull salmon-pink shirt - was alive. Heisuke was the first to walk over to the group, and Keiko only hesitated for a moment before she followed. Upon closer inspection, Keiko could clearly tell that the young boy was actually a young _girl_ , a bit younger than Heisuke. She was unconscious, and Keiko glared at Okita.

"What happened." She demanded, her frozen stare locked on Okita. He only shrugged in response, not bothering to be gentle with the girl in his arms.

"The kid saw some of the Furies." Hijikata answered in Okita's stead, although he did not bother to stop walking. "We will deal with it tomorrow morning. Souji, tie the kid up." And with that final order, he stalked off towards his room.

"He looks around my age…" Heisuke commented with a dejected look on his face, watching Okita walk off with the young girl in his arms. "I hope we don't have to kill him."

Keiko snorted and quickly covered her mouth with her hand when she heard Heisuke refer to the girl as 'him'. Heisuke whipped his head around to face her, apparently offended. "What's so funny!?" He demanded, but Keiko only shook her head with a slight grin on her face. She walked past him, heading towards her room, and uttered a sentence as she passed by the confused boy.

"I'm sure you'll find out soon enough."

 **A/N: OKaaaayyy now we're finally getting somewhere! This one was purely Keiko/Heisuke friendship building. And OH MY GOD it just kept going and going! I felt like I was writing this one forever, but in a good way. Like I just couldn't stop. Writing this one was quite fun, actually. The kind of sibling relationship between Keiko and Heisuke has completely taken over my writer's brain, apparently.**

 **Anyway, let me know what you guys think about this one! Thanks so much for reading! :)**


	11. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hey all! I'm so, so sorry about the long wait for this chapter! I don't know what it was about this chapter, but it took me forever and a half to write. I would sit down to try and write it, and I'd get one sentence in and hit a road block. But... it's here now! And in this chapter we're following Chizuru rather than Keiko. So we'll see how that works out. Enjoy!**

Chizuru awoke slowly, almost painfully. Her eyes still felt heavy and she was sore all over, despite having slept entirely through the night. She tried to groan and stretch out her sore limbs, only to realize that her mouth was gagged and her wrists bound. Her eyes widened, fear racing through her.

The previous night's events suddenly came rushing back to her, reminding her of how she had found herself in this situation at all. She had grown over-confident, thinking that her disguise as a boy was enough to keep her from harm. However, the city of Kyoto really was a dangerous place, filled with dangerous people.

Chizuru remembered the ronin trying to steal her precious family sword, then chasing her through the city streets under the moonlight. She had hidden from them, and then… Her eyes widened at the memory. Those… those _monsters_ had attacked the ronin. Pure white hair, and eyes the shade of freshly spilt blood, with wide, hungry grins spread across their faces. They were wearing blue coats…

Chizuru could only just remember the men who saved her from those terrible creatures - three men from the Shinsengumi. The first, a tall, sarcastic man with reddish brown hair who, if she were honest, was actually kind of frightening in his own right. Second, a quiet man wearing a white scarf with purple-tinted hair, he was the one who had disposed of the monsters. And finally, a very handsome, stoic looking man with a long pony-tail. He seemed to be their leader, and it was after meeting him - and having his sword pointed at her face - that Chizuru finally was at her limit and lost consciousness.

Now, she found herself lying on a futon, her wrists bound a little too tightly behind her back and her mouth gagged.

Before she could begin to think of a way to escape, she heard the doors slide open behind her. She turned her head to the side and saw a middle-aged man with kind eyes. He looked down upon her with gentleness and pity, and when he saw the state she was in he hastily set about untying her.

"This is no way to treat a guest of ours, now is it?" He seemed to be talking to himself, seeing as she couldn't respond even if she wanted to. "Here. I'll loosen the ropes for you." He spoke gently, and Chizuru felt relieved that she could at least wake up to someone a little less scary. The man adjusted her wrists so that they were in front of her rather than behind her back, and finally, he took the cloth silencing her away from her mouth.

"My name in Inoue Genzaburo. If you would please follow me." He still spoke gently, still had that same kindness in his eyes, but Chizuru felt her blood run cold at the notion of following him anywhere. But, she had little choice in the matter.

As the man - Inoue - helped her up from her futon, he spoke about other men in the Shinsengumi. She presumed, the men who had found her last night. "They've been discussing what to do with you since morning. For now, they've decided to hear about what exactly you saw last night." As he said this, Chizuru could swear she saw something flicker in his eyes. Suspicion, perhaps.

She only nodded numbly, following Inoue obediently towards her fate. He must have picked up on her fear, perhaps it was the shaking of her hands or the quivering of her lips that gave it away. He turned to her abruptly, a warm smile on his face.

"I know they seem scary, but they are all very kind I can assure you. You don't need to worry." He tried to reassure her. She didn't feel very reassured.

"Oh…" She managed to force out. Her voice felt strained, her throat tightening around the sound as though she were being strangled. She swallowed, trying to suppress the anxiety building up within her, and continued following Inoue through the Shinsengumi compound. In an effort to help calm her nerves, Inoue began to tell her of all the captains of the Shinsengumi. She was barely able to pay attention, but she got the gist of what he was telling her.

After what seemed to Chizuru an eternity, the pair finally reached the common room. Inoue glanced at Chizuru for a moment before nodding slightly and opening the door.

There, Chizuru was met with the leaders of the Shinsengumi.

A heavy silence filled the air as she entered. All eyes were on her, scrutinizing and pointed like knives. She looked around the room at the men present, nervousness filling her gut and making her fidget furiously.

The frightening man she had met the night before, whom she remembered to have introduced himself as Okita Souji, was the first to break the silence. "Good morning. I take it you slept well?" Chizuru eyed this man suspiciously. Although his words were pleasant enough, his tone suggested otherwise. As though he were mocking her.

"Well, it wasn't particularly… comfortable." She said timidly. A mischievous smirk played on Okita's lips. "Is that so?" he said quietly, his smirk growing slightly. "Because when I went to have a look at you earlier, you didn't budge. No matter what I poked." Chizuru's eyes widened, and she gasped, but he didn't allow her the opportunity to speak yet.

"Yes, you were knocked out cold. You looked so snug and cozy in your sleep too."

"W-what?!" Chizuru exclaimed. She jerked backwards involuntarily, away from him. Her hands shot up to her chest, concealing herself unnecessarily. Suddenly she heard a frustrated sigh from beside Okita, and her eyes turned slightly to the left.

"He's only teasing you. Souji didn't go anywhere near your room." It was the quiet man with the scarf, Saito Hajime, who had spoken up. Chizuru let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding, her hands falling limp onto her lap in relief. Okita looked as though he was going to say something else, when the third man she had met the night before spoke up.

"Shut it. You sound like a bunch of kids." He said, his voice firm and authoritative. She remembered him to have introduced himself as Hijikata Toshizo, the vice commander of the Shinsengumi. Upon his order, the other two fell silent, and all Chizuru could do was watch and wait.

"So, Hijikata-san, this is your witness?" She heard a young-sounding voice chime in from the opposite corner of the room. She turned her head, only to see three men sitting together. The one who spoke was a boy not much older than herself with a long, chestnut coloured ponytail. He had startling blue eyes, and despite himself he looked incredibly kind. When he looked at her it wasn't cold with suspicion, but with warmth and pity. "He's a real stick huh? Just a kid…"

" _You're_ calling him a kid, Heisuke? That's rich." A louder, older man blurted out towards the boy. So the younger one was Toudou Heisuke then. She examined the older man, and the first thing she noticed was the scale of him. He was very large. He had messy, dark brown hair held out of his face with an intricate green headband. What stuck out to her the most was that, despite the lighthearted joke he had just made to his comrade, his eyes seemed… almost hollow. They looked as though they would have been a stunning shade of blue, if only they didn't look so sad. She assumed him to be Nagakura Shinpachi

She saw the man glance idly to something across the room, only for him to quickly avert his gaze and stare pointedly at a wall. She heard the third man - a very tall, handsome redhead who she assumed to be Harada Sanosuke - say something, but she was distracted by what she thought would have been the equivalent to an elephant standing idly in the middle of the room.

What the large man with sad eyes had been staring at almost longingly - a woman.

Chizuru thought back to what Inoue had told her, but she couldn't recall him saying anything about a woman amongst the Shinsengumi. She stood leaning against a post across the room, holding a large spear-like weapon against her chest. She wore strange clothing as well. She had pants and a tight black shirt, and flat shoes rather than sandals. Her long hair was tied gently into place around the ends, but otherwise was left alone. Everything about her was strange. And, Chizuru noticed, her eyes looked the same as the loud brunette's had been. Hollow and sad. And she was staring just as intently at the man as he had been her, just that she didn't bother to look away.

Chizuru idly wondered what could have happened between the two for them to have such an emptiness in their eyes.

Upon her inspection of this strange woman - and her bewilderment of why nobody else seemed to be surprised by her - Chizuru had missed the banter between the three men. They seemed to have finished, with Heisuke muttering something about 'old bastards', and now attentions were back onto her. Everyone in the room was now staring intently at her, their eyes full of suspicion and distrust.

"I apologize for all of this frightening behaviour." a tall man with round glasses and a kind smile spoke up, looking over at Chizuru with gentleness. "Please, don't let the men unsettle you."

"Oh…" She managed to force out. Despite the man's gentle appearance, she still felt the fear clutching at her throat, causing it to close without her consent.

"Are you serious? You're the scariest out of all of us, Sanan." Hijikata suddenly spoke up, his brows furrowed. Chizuru looked around the room to see the rest of the men nodding solemnly, and the lone woman staring towards Sanan with an untrusting gaze.

"Oh? I can understand _their_ feelings, but for our demon of a commander to feel such as well…" The man called Sanan let out a dramatic sigh as he turned away from Hijikata. He had a look of fake dejection, and Hijikata smirked as he shook his head.

"You're lucky to have a friend like Sanan, Toshi." A large, friendly looking man spoke up. He was seated in between Hijikata and Sanan, and his position was such that everyone else in the room was facing him. Chizuru turned her attentions towards him, and a large grin spread across his face as he addressed her. "Oh, my apologies. I haven't introduced myself! I am Isami Kondou, Chief of the Shinsengumi!" Although this man - Kondou - was very loud and exuberant as he spoke, he sounded so gentle and kind. Unlike the rest, there was no animosity or distrust in his eyes. Not even pity. This man seemed genuinely kindhearted, and Chizuru hoped desperately that perhaps he would be kind enough to spare her.

"Uhm… When you say 'Chief'... Do you mean to say that you are the most important man in the Shinsengumi?" She asked hesitantly. Kondou chuckled in response.

"Well, I wouldn't call myself the most important. It's more accurate to say I represent everyone." He started, before turning his head towards Hijikata. "Toshi here is the commander, and Sanan is our colonel." Kondou seemed like more of a proud father than the leader of a feared military group. Hijikata cleared his throat loudly, gaining Kondou's attention.

"Uhm… Kondou-san? Why are you telling the kid all this?" Hijikata asked, his brows knit together to form a small wrinkle between his eyes. Kondou looked at him questioningly, his head tilting to the side in confusion.

"Why, do you think it's a bad idea?" He asked slowly. She heard Nagakura huff in mild annoyance. "I mean, unless you want the kid to know all of our secrets, maybe you should keep your mouth shut." He said incredulously.

"Exactly!" Heisuke butted in. "Why bother anyway? We don't owe him anything." Despite his words, Heisuke looked guilty. Chizuru gulped nonetheless. If the one who looked as though he would be kind wouldn't show any mercy, then perhaps she really was going to die in this place…

Just as the thought crossed her mind, Harada looked over at Kondou and let out a pleasant bark of laughter.

"We've already brought him here. It's not like telling him who we are will hurt us." He said with a gentle smile on his face. Kondou's spirits seemed to brighten at these words, and he turned his own kind smile towards Chizuru once again.

"Let's get back to business then. Can you give me a full report of last night?" Kondou asked, his gaze directed at Saito. Saito nodded, his brows furrowed as though he were in deep thought. He paused for a moment before finally opening his mouth to speak.

"Last night we were on patrol when we encountered some wandering ronin. They drew steel, so we fought." He began. "Some of our men subdued the ronin, but, in doing so, exposed their failure." Saito spoke the last sentence with strained precision. Chizuru could tell… He was choosing his words very carefully.

Then, he turned his cold gaze towards her.

"I didn't see anything." She blurted instantly, her fists clenched. Hijikata stared at her with a heated glare, and she could feel that everyone in the room was looking at her with similar expressions.

It was the strange woman standing in the far corner of the room who spoke up, her clear, chime-like voice breaking the uncomfortable silence. "If that were truly the case, you wouldn't be here right now." She said, her cold eyes narrowed. "Lying is not going to get you anywhere, dear."

Chizuru stared at her in disbelief. The way that she spoke was authoritative, although in a different manner than when Hijikata spoke. Her voice rang through Chizuru, and she felt almost bound by what the woman said. She gulped, staring at her hands.

"I- I was running away from the ronin." Chizuru started. "Th-then some people with Shinsengumi uniforms appeared… Really, they sort of saved me." She heard Nagakura sigh.

"So you saw them slicing up those ronin, right?" He said, his voice sounding strained. It was as though he was trying to keep his patience. It made Chizuru even more nervous.

"W-well, uhm…" She couldn't find the words to say. The strange woman's words were still ringing in her head, but her nerves were getting the better of her and, despite her best efforts, she seemed to be failing horribly at articulating herself.

"In other words, you actually saw everything. The whole ugly business." It was Harada who had put her unfortunate fate into words. Chizuru could only stare at her hands, balled into fists on her lap, and pray to any god who would listen that her life be spared.

Chizuru steeled herself, tightening her fists, and finally looked up to the leaders of the Shinsengumi. She did her best to wear a determined expression, despite the crippling anxiety she felt tearing her apart. "I… I won't tell anyone! I swear it!" She was grasping, desperately, at anything that might save her. She had heard the stories, back in Edo, of the ruthless Shinsengumi. Her mind was reeling, searching for a way out of this horrid predicament.

"It seems unlikely that you are an enemy, however, despite your good intentions, you could be taken for interrogating." Sanan spoke up, his kind voice betrayed by his cold eyes. He glared down at her before continuing in a much more sinister tone. "Do you think you could handle torture?" He asked. Chizuru couldn't stop herself from whimpering and recoiling away from the man. From the corner of her eye, she saw Okita nodding his agreement.

"We have no way of verifying your word. It wouldn't be very smart to just let you go." He said, a manner of indifference in his tone. He sighed before allowing his shoulders to slouch slightly, leaning one of his hands on his hip. "Let's just kill the kid and be done with it. You want to keep someone quiet, that's the surest way to do it." Chizuru felt her mind go blank at his words. She didn't want to die, she was terrified of the idea, but upon these statements she could almost see her chances of life slipping away from her. And despite herself, the anxiety was weighing down heavily upon her. She heard the strange woman in the corner click her tongue disapprovingly.

"There are other ways to resolve problems besides; 'stab it until it goes away'. Honestly Okita, I cannot fathom how your mind works." Her lovely voice was filled with disdain. From the way the woman was glaring at him, Chizuru guessed that there was some kind of prior animosity there. Okita chuckled. "Awwe, come on now Ayama-san. It was just a joke." His playful smirk returned to his features.

"Perhaps it should have sounded like one then." She heard Saito speak up, and turned to see him glaring at Okita.

"I would like to hear the commander's opinion. Commander Hijikata?" Sanan spoke up, directing everyone's attentions towards the dark-haired commander. He sighed and glanced at Chizuru, before turning his gaze towards his men.

"Last night, we killed members who broke our code." He began. "This kid shouldn't have been involved at all. While it is likely that the kid saw something, I highly doubt he really understands what it was he saw." Chizuru perked up slightly at these words. Perhaps her fate was not yet sealed.

Nagakura scoffed. "Even so, this is serious. We have bigger things to worry about. We've got to keep this under wraps. If rumours break out that soldiers of the Shinsengumi are thirsty for blood, it would be… problematic." He spoke decisively, and she could see some of the other men present nodding their heads in agreement. Even she couldn't argue anything… His words made sense. However, to her astonishment, one of the men seemed pensive about the situation.

"I think we should let him go." Heisuke said, his brow furrowed. "I mean, he doesn't know _everything_ about it, you know?" His eyes looked hopeful as he looked around the room. However, a thick silence fell at his words. Hijikata glared at the boy.

"Shut it, Heisuke." He barked, and Heisuke's eyes widened upon realizing his mistake. "Oops…" He murmured, sending an apologetic glance towards Chizuru. He looked like a puppy who had just been scolded. She heard Okita snicker.

"Uh-oh." He said, his voice teasing. "Well, this is going to make it harder for us to just let you go…" He allowed the words to hang in the air, his eyes narrowed as he looked towards Chizuru. Just like that, the spark of hope she had felt was put out, and she let out a light whimper of fear. Nagakura crossed his arms over his chest as he looked at her.

"A man should always be ready to face death. You should make peace with yours." He said, as though he were lecturing a child. Chizuru had honestly forgotten about her disguise, and even at being called a man she was so overcome with anxiety that she said nothing. She heard the woman - Ayama - let out a frustrated sigh before she stepped away from the post she had been leaning on.

"Commander… It is clear that we are torn about the child's fate. Keeping them here is only going to lead to being forced to kill them… If it's alright, I think it would be best to take the child back to their room." There was that authority again. Chizuru could sense a strange power coming from this woman, something she had no understanding of. It was other-wordly, something she had never seen before. Stranger still, was how no one else seemed to sense it. Hijikata turned his head slightly towards her.

"Are you volunteering to escort the kid?" He asked, and Ayama nodded her head once. She walked towards Chizuru with purpose. Once she was beside the younger girl, she reached down and took a firm, yet also gentle, hold of Chizuru's arm, hoisting her to her feet. Chizuru wobbled a little, unsteady from her anxiety. Ayama held her still for a moment, eyeing her with what looked to be concern. Once she determined that Chizuru could stand on her own, she released her arm.

The two turned to walk out of the room, and as they passed by Heisuke, Chizuru could have sworn she heard him mutter an apology to her.

They walked back to the room she had awoken in, neither of them speaking. Once they were there, Ayama finally broke the silence. "I'm going to untie you. I seriously doubt you're going to try anything. You don't seem so foolish to me." She took hold of Chizuru's hands as she spoke, grimacing as she noticed the slight rope burn around her wrists. She began to gently untie the binds, her hands working quickly to free Chizuru.

"My name is Ayama Keiko, by the way. It must have surprised you to see me in there, since I am a woman. Or, perhaps it was reassuring, considering your predicament." She eyed Chizuru, a playful smirk on her lips. Chizuru rubbed her wrists, taking a step back from the woman in front of her. "Tell me, why would a girl be walking around the streets of Kyoto dressed as a boy?" Chizuru's head snapped up, her eyes widening.

"H-how could you tell?" She blurted. Ayama chuckled.

"It's not very difficult, if you really look. Although I'm certain that Heisuke and Shinpachi-san are fooled, I don't really think any of the others are. Well… Maybe Kondou-san."

"Oh…" Chizuru looked down, not sure of how to react. Her anxiety was still pressing around her, nearly suffocating her, and she couldn't get a read on Ayama. It made talking very difficult.

"So? Why are you trying to disguise yourself?" Ayama pushed. Chizuru did her best to swallow her nerves and answer honestly.

"I just thought it would be safer for a boy to travel to Kyoto than for a girl…" She said, her voice sounding small and frightened. Ayama nodded. "That's smart. Kyoto really isn't a safe place right now, but a boy is less likely to be harassed. So, where were you travelling from?" Ayama's voice was soft and inviting, so when she gestured for Chizuru to sit down she did so without hesitation. She felt as though the anxiety was finally starting to die down, and Ayama's gentle touch and kind eyes were helping Chizuru to relax a little.

"I came here from Edo. I'm looking for my father." She said, her voice a little more confident than it was before. Ayama nodded. "Is he missing?" She asked gently. Chizuru nodded.

"He left our home to come work here in Kyoto just over a year ago. He would send me letters often, but about six months ago the letters suddenly stopped. I was so worried… I decided to leave home and come here to search for him." Chizuru looked up at Ayama, determination in her eyes. She had been so overcome with fear that she had forgotten her purpose. Ayama smiled at her, and it was a smile full of kindness.

"Perhaps you should tell the others your story as well." She spoke gently, and Chizuru felt that she could trust in this strange woman before her. "It may change their perspectives a bit."

Ayama rose from her seat then and promptly nodded at Chizuru. "I'm going to get some of them, I will be back soon. Sit tight." With that, she strolled confidently out of the room. Upon her departure, Chizuru felt her anxiety begin to build up again. She inhaled deeply, holding her breath for a moment, before slowly exhaling in an attempt to calm herself down.

Chizuru thought back on everything that had just happened. She could tell that the odds were not in her favour, but she had hope that at least some of the people here seemed kind. She thought of Ayama gently leading her away from the glares of the men, of Heisuke quietly apologizing to her for inadvertently making her situation worse, of Kondou pleasantly introducing himself and speaking to her with warmth in his eyes. Perhaps if she could appeal to these people, she might yet make it out of here alive.

On top of that, she hadn't told everyone that she was a girl yet. Ayama had said that everyone else probably already knew, but she had heard a few of the men referring to her as a boy. Perhaps this may also change the perspectives of her captors.

As she pondered these things, she wondered who Ayama would bring back with her. She only hoped that she didn't decide to bring back Okita with her. Chizuru wasn't sure how much more of his sadistic teasing she could take.

She heard a knock on the door frame and squeaked in surprise. Admittedly, she hadn't done a very good job of calming herself down. If anything her racing mind had only put her even more on edge. So with a shaky voice she called out for her visitors to come in.

"Jeez, you're so mousy. Man up already!" The loud brunette called out as he entered her room. He was followed closely by Saito, Heisuke, Harada, and finally Ayama. Chizuru swallowed a lump in her throat as the group gathered in her doorway.

"The kid would like to try and offer an explanation for us." Ayama said casually, a calm smirk on her lips as she eyed her companions. Saito sighed quietly as he turned to face Chizuru.

"It is unlikely we will spare you out of sympathy. As long as you understand that, say what you wish." He said in a monotonous voice. Chizuru gulped and clenched her fists, trying desperately to push through her nerves. She opened her mouth to try to speak.

"You know," Heisuke suddenly blurted, cutting her off before she could begin. Chizuru looked over at him with an unimpressed glare. "A man should know when to accept his fate." He looked quite pleased with himself in that moment, acting as though he were giving her some kind of deep wisdom. Chizuru gaped at him, and as she looked towards Ayama, she could see that the other woman was also unamused by Heisuke's 'wisdom'.

Chizuru turned her attentions back to Heisuke, all of her previous anxiousness being replaced by a sudden anger and irritation. She glared at him furiously. He flinched at the look in her eyes and took a hesitant step back. "H-hey… What's up with you?" He asked shakily.

"Just now, you said 'A man should know when to accept his fate.' You even interrupted me to say something like that. You don't think there's anything wrong with killing a man without hearing him out?" Chizuru accused, glaring daggers towards the boy. Heisuke stared at her for a moment with wide eyes, but soon regained his composure and he glared right back at her. He pointed at her, standing up straighter to reach his full height… although he still wasn't that much taller than her.

"You oughta watch your mouth. Don't you get what's going on here?" He started, his brows furrowed as he leaned over Chizuru's petite frame. "Maybe you should start acting like a man, hm? Accept your fate. We all must do our duty."

Chizuru placed her hands on her hips and leaned forward threateningly. Her anger towards the boy gave her a newfound courage, so she pushed herself and took an angry step towards Heisuke in an effort to seem more intimidating than he was.

"But I'm _not_ a man." She shot back at him.

Heisuke's eyes went wide, and she caught him do a once over of her entire body as he took a step backwards. She huffed and backed away from him, her right hand leaning on her hip as she did so. Heisuke seemed pensive, he looked at her again before averting his eyes. His brows knit together in thought, and he looked her over once again. He chuckled nervously as he seemed to be examining her face.

"Y-yeah, right… You're trying to tell me you're a girl?" He said incredulously. Chizuru glared at him before answering with a definitive "Yes."

"WHAT?!" Heisuke and Nagakura both shouted at once, their eyes wide and disbelieving. Harada chuckled from a spot he had claimed in the corner of the room, while Ayama seemed to be beside herself laughing. Heisuke turned his eyes towards her, and seemed to have another realisation that put him in even more distress.

"YOU _KNEW_!" He shouted at her. With tears in her eyes and her arm clutching her stomach, she nodded. "Of course I knew! I knew as soon as we saw her last night!" She choked out through her laughter. Heisuke put a hand to his forehead and stared at the ground. His eyes looked as though they might pop out of his head, they were so wide.

"I can't say I'm surprised, there is something a bit lady-like about her profile." Harada said with a lazy smirk on his face. Nagakura shook his head vigorously.

"How the hell were we supposed to know that!?" He shouted. "G-girls aren't supposed to wear pants!" He concluded his reasoning, and was met by an unimpressed glare from Ayama.

"Ahem." She cleared her throat as she glared at him, and he nervously turned his attention to her. However, upon the two of them making eye contact, they both sighed and averted their eyes. Nagakura shook his head and turned to leave, his footsteps heavy as he left.

Chizuru watched the interactions between the two of them curiously before Heisuke took a tentative step towards her. He reached a hand up to nervously scratch the back of his head before looking at her sheepishly. She couldn't help but to notice that he looked… kind of cute.

"S-sorry about… What I said…" He forced out the words, but she appreciated them nonetheless and nodded her thanks. "S-so, uhm, what's your name then?" Heisuke asked. She offered him a shy smile at his friendly gesture.

"My name is Yukimura Chizuru."

 **A/N: OH. MY. GOD.**

 **This chapter took me FOR-FREAKING-EVER to write! I was basically just trying to incorporate chapter 1 of the game, and I couldn't decide whether to do it following what Chizuru see or following what Keiko sees. I wanted to write in more of Chizuru's struggling with the high levels of stress and anxiety that would come from being abducted and threatened by a group of renowned killers. I was going to write in all of the first chapter of the game, but this alone was 9 pages so I just said screw it and I will throw in some form of exposition in the next chapter. Hopefully you all got at least some satisfaction from this chapter... Leave a review of what you think of seeing things from Chizuru's point of view rather than Keiko's. I'm thinking of switching between the two every few chapters, depending on what is going on at the time.**

 **Sorry again for the long wait for this chapter guys! Thank you so much for all the favs/follows! 3**


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